Guiding the Wind Waker
by SamuraiSal1
Summary: What would happen if Link, the Hero of Winds, had a guide for his adventure? And what would've happened if his guide turned out to be the Hero of Time?  Rated K for various injuries; Wind Waker!setting. ON HIATUS
1. First Boss

Every sign pointed to the cave entrance ahead of him, yet every sign also pointed that he should run screaming out the open archway behind him, jump off the cliff, and sail away in his magical, talking boat. But Link hadn't collected all of those keys for nothing, and the "Boss Key" had been a _pain_ to find. No—he couldn't turn back now, he had to fight whatever creature was disturbing that dragon thing sitting on the top of the volcano. Honestly, he couldn't remember what that thing's name was. Something like hullabaloo sounded familiar, though.

Before he could unlock the door, though, he found a pot with a few heart containers in it.

_Yeah,_ the hero thought, _looks like I'm going to need a couple hundred of those._

Still, he couldn't deny that they looked like they'd be useful, especially with that awful wail coming from the other side of the door. What kind of creature would _want_ to mess with a dragon's tail, he didn't know, but he felt as if a reference to something he wasn't supposed to know about yet had just sailed over his head.

Clearing his head of the strange thought, he bent down to reach into the pot with the life energy. At about the same time, one of those annoying fire-centipede things had uncurled and decided to make his legs its new target.

A very surprised (and slightly undignified) Wind Waker leapt into the air, letting out a shriek. His sword was drawn in under a second, and the creature, quite frankly, didn't stand a chance.

Why it had designated the green-clad Outsetter as its prey, Link would never know. He hardly thought that he would've been tasty, anyways. But nonetheless, those that insulted the tunic-and-tight-wearing individual had something coming to them, anyways.

Another reference soared over the child's head, but he ignored it and, after carefully surveying the area, reached down into the pot, restoring the life energy that had been leeched from him by both the lava creature and a great many other foes on the way to the door.

And somehow, it always came back to the door. That menacing, gold-plated door, that seemed as if giant teeth were guarding it. It was ominous to ever degree known to man (or, more specifically, little kids trying _very hard_ to save their even littler sisters). …This was increased by the fact that Link was still scared of (including but definitely not limited to) the dark, spiders, enclosed spaces, and the color purple.

…After he unlocked the door and stepped inside, his (very long) list of fears was increased by about five—magma, giant magma _monsters_, tripping when in the midst of the previous two, being burned while all of the above were there and/or happening simultaneously, and most of all, dying of all of those before he was even a teenager.

Link took a single step forward, bracing himself (and making sure his trusty grappling hook was close at all times) for the beating he was sure to get in the time to come.

…And then he really saw the monster and tripped over his own two feet out of fear, landing face-first into magma, getting burned pretty badly before he instinctively jumped from of the pit of fire and out of harm's way. That was about the time when the magma monster slammed itself on top of the young hero.

000

"You've _got_ to be kidding me," a single voice spoke up, astonishing the rest of the _Council of the Realm of Heroes _as he stood. The only one who he really knew in the room rose, too, and gently took his hand.

"Now, Link…" she said quietly, with the grace only a true princess of Hyrule could manage. Really, it was no surprise that he was acting this way. He hadn't been too different in his time as a Hero, and quite frankly, he didn't like seeing someone else have to go through the same thing. There was also the small factor that this new Link (no older than twelve) was making a complete fool of himself.

"What?" he snapped in angry defense, ripping his hand away from hers. "I'm allowed to be worried for the kid." The Hero of Time ran his fingers through his ever-messy hair, and slumped back into his seat. "I mean," he continued, "I at least had Navi. This kid's got absolutely no one to help him figure out what to do."

Zelda nodded. She knew how he felt, really—she just didn't like complaining about things that she couldn't change. He frowned up at her, and then glanced back at the glowing scene in front that rested on top of the Heroes Table.

The younger Link was dusting himself off, and trying very hard to stand up straight, but it was easy to see that he'd been badly burned, and the Hero of Time knew that it was never fun being squished by something at least a hundred times your weight.

Still, the elder of the Links couldn't help but be proud of his counterpart. The Wind Waker hadn't been called to fight by a talking tree—the boy had started his adventure by saving a girl that he didn't even know (a _pirate_, nonetheless!) and then finding that his sister had been kidnapped. So far, he'd already managed to sneak into the Forsaken Fortress, (though, due to his lack of training, he was caught by the same bird that took his sister), cast far off into the sea, where he was found by a talking boat (which, in the Hero of Time's opinion, it reminded him a great deal of someone he knew, who, by the way, still hadn't made it to the _Realm of Heroes_, which he should've, if he was truly dead) and ultimately ended up here, in Dragon Roost Island, battling some hideous monster just because he didn't think that that poor Valoo deserved to be tortured.

Link almost smiled when he thought of how brave the twelve-year-old was. …Well, brave but utterly lacking in strength, skill, and training in general. And reckless—couldn't forget that.

"I just wish there was something I could do to help him," he sighed, leaning forward onto the table, cupping his chin in his hands.

To which some of the elders glanced between themselves, and one, Link honestly didn't know his name, cleared his throat, making a strange gesture with his hands. Several whispered back and forth to eachother, and finally, the eldest, who was sitting at the end of the table, nodded to the others and began to speak.

"We have… been studying what a retired hero may do, and we have decided to allow you certain… privileges, because of what you've already accomplished." The man paused, allowing the seventeen-year-old to process the information. "If you wish, you could become this boy's mentor—teach him what he needs to know and guide him through all of his trials and tribulations."

The Hero of Time blinked, studying the old man's face, trying to see if this was an elaborate joke… or if he might actually be allowed to keep this child from sharing his fate. And if he succeeded… then there might actually be a chance of this boy having a long, happy life, with children and grandchildren to share his adventures with…

A destiny that had been denied to each and every Link in the past. They had all been, sooner or later, killed. Heroism had its rewards, yes, but also many harsh consequences. There was no safety once you took that first step, and once you entered the battlefield, your mind never seemed to exit it.

Link nodded.

Yes. The boy needed him. A pirate girl who could occasionally communicate with him by use of rock was better than nothing, but she almost never spoke to him, and quite frankly, she didn't have enough experience. The Hero of Time was going to do his best, and _his_ best was better than everyone else's best.

Maybe the kid would have a chance, after all.

"I accept."

And the moment the words were out of his mouth, the men and women at the other side of the table seemed to become as one as the Wind spun him around, until he found himself in a dark room.

One wall appeared to be magic, because, through it, he could see the younger Link, and everything around him, all at once.

000

The Wind Waker stood up slowly, pretending his absolute hardest that an imprint of his spine hadn't been permanently grafted onto all of his other organs. Yes, he was bruised. But by some miracle, nothing seemed to be broken…

Until he tried to grab his sword, which was right about when an intense pain shot up all throughout his arm. It didn't exactly feel like fire, but that was mainly because he'd just taken a nice, refreshing bath in a pool of magma. Yeah, he knew what fire was, and what he felt in his arm hurt, but not quite as bad as tripping into that pit.

Link backed up until he touched the wall, and from there, slowly slid back towards the door. He didn't exit it, but instead crouched down against the sides. He was fairly certain that the monster couldn't get to him from there, so he felt safe enough. You know, if he ignored the giant magma centipede's angry shrieks and hullabaloo's wailing.

Really, he wanted to fight the thing, if nothing else but to show the monster that it wasn't so tough, and that it should stop hurting the dragon. But Link needed to rest, just for a moment.

He cradled his left arm in his right, and propped his useless sword and shield against the other side of the door.

Gritting his teeth, he found that he could ignore the pain, at least a little. Taking a few deep breaths, he finally managed to roll up the burnt sleeve covering his left arm. What he found underneath was rather disheartening—his forearm had turned an awful reddish-purple color, and it rather than straight and smooth, his arm was bent at a place no arm should be bent at.

And though he carefully observed his other injuries (most of them bad burns, and there was one cut that he couldn't remember getting but figured it had something to do with the drying blood lining one side of his sword), none were so repelling as his broken arm.

Not for the first time on this adventure, Link closed his eyes and wondered if he was really cut out for this 'hero' thing.

000

The older Link stared at the screen, watching his counterpart crouching next to the door. He had to suppress a wince once he saw exactly how bad the kid had been hurt, but he couldn't have done anything to prevent that.

What he could do from then on, however, was a different matter entirely.

The Hero of Time glanced around the insides of the volcano.

_Was there anything he could use to defeat the Fire Monster without having to do much, himself?_

And, quite frankly, he didn't think that the kid _could_ do much with that sword of his right then, at any rate. His arm would distract him too much from the task at hand.

The older Link looked back to the Wind Waker, and raised an eyebrow at the child's meager supplies. No potions, no healing fairies, no fantastic weapons—only a rusty sword, a small wooden shield, and… a grappling hook? _Good,_ Link thought, _that's something useful!_

His plan in order, the Hero of Time yelled as loud as he could at the screen, and the boy clapped his hands over his ears instantly, his face contorted in pain.

000

'_HEY! LINK! CAN YOU HEAR ME?' _a voice shouted. The child was unprepared, and although his arm hurt, he honestly couldn't help but try to block out the noise. It was instinct, after all. People tended to try to protect themselves from sudden, loud noises.

And noises that come from the inside of one's head are always a good deal more troublesome than those on the outside.

'…_Sorry about that, Link,'_ the voice said, much softer this time. '_I was just trying to get your attention. I didn't mean to hurt you.'_

The young Wind Waker pulled out a stone from his back pocket and stared at it.

"Tetra?" he asked quietly, "Is that you? You sound… different."

'_No, no. I'm not Tetra. But I am here to help you. I couldn't help but notice that you're in a bit of a bad situation. Your arm's busted and you don't have many supplies with you.' _

The boy couldn't help but agree.

'_But I have a plan. You don't have to do much, but I'm fairly certain that if you do it right, you'll end up okay. I'll guide you through it, but for now, just get your grappling hook.'_ The strange voice seemed to have finished, but Link couldn't help but be confused.

He tilted his head to the side. "If you're not Tetra, then who are you?" he asked, and really, it wasn't too unreasonable of a question. But for some reason, the voice seemed almost angry when it replied.

'…_I… I'm, um… Nevermind that! Right now, I'm just trying to keep you from getting killed out here, Link. You were already dehydrated before going into this battle, and I doubt you have much longer before you get drowsy. And believe me, that is _not_ something you want when you're in battle.'_ The voice stopped for a moment, as if considering something, then started up again. _'You need to get out of here soon. Adrenaline only lasts for so long, and once it wears off, that arm's going to hurt a lot worse.' _

"Forgive me for saying so, mister, but… you seem to know an awful lot about how things work in battles, and injuries and stuff. And… how do you know my name?"

'_Enough questions! Geez, kid! I'm trying to save your butt, and you don't trust me! Is there anything I could say to you that would make you believe me?'_

"For one," the boy said determinedly, "You could tell me who you are."

'_If I say, 'your conscience', will you believe me?'_

Link sighed, shaking his head. He was basically stuck here, and the voice may sound slightly insane, but he also knew that he only had a few options. And crazy as he might feel, the voice actually did offer some useful advice.

"But… I don't have much of a choice here, do I?" he sat up as gently as he could, putting most of his weight onto the leg that had been the least burned.

"And besides," he said between gritted teeth, wincing as he accidentally bumped the elbow of his injured arm into the wall, "it's not like I have much of an option. What's this plan of yours, anyway?"

The voice told him, and then the boy grinned.

"That's it? That's all I have to do?" the green-clad figure's eyes widened, realizing in shock that the plan was actually pretty ingenious.

'_That's it. That's all you have to do. So what are you waiting for? Get out your grappling hook! …And do it carefully, for Farore's sake. Wouldn't want you to remind the creature that you're there with some loud squeal.' _

Link complied slowly, unclasping it carefully. His left arm—his dominant hand—wouldn't really respond anymore, so everything he did seemed awkward.

'_Now. Aim for Valoo's tail. It should be hooked enough that getting a hold on it would be easy. Just aim very, very, _very_ precisely, because if you missed and hit the creature…'_

That was about when the young Wind Waker missed and hit the Fire Monster.

It roared and thrashed around, wondering what had disturbed it, before finding the little boy it had crushed earlier standing paralyzed with fear out in the open. It started towards him, but right as the creature was about to hit him, the voice came out loud and clear.

'_Move, you idiot! Do you _want_ to be crushed again? RUN! Back into the doorway!'_

Thankfully, the little boy in green listened, and was inside the door once more, breathing heavily, and fighting against the pain.

000

The Hero of Time put his face in his hands. It was hopeless. The boy just couldn't aim correctly with his right arm, and the pain might not even be manageable if he tried with his left. Still, Link was not about to let this boy die. This foe wasn't even that fierce—it would be a dishonor if the boy died because of such a low-ranking monster.

Link breathed deeply, trying very hard to focus.

He couldn't help it. He hadn't been in a combat situation for more than a century, and it really didn't help that in the _Realm of Heroes_, people never really fought, save for the occasional duel, which the Hero of Time never participated in, anyways. But if he wanted to succeed, he would have to remember every single trick he'd learned.

He glanced back up at the screen, where the little boy seemed to be fighting back tears.

_Of course. Running with his arm like that… the pain must be excruciating_. And it had been nearly ten minutes—the Wind Waker's adrenaline was on the decline. Both Links were running out of time and options.

000

"Hey, voice?" the child squeaked, his voice high and brittle. "Are you still there?"

'_Yes. I'm here. Don't… don't try to move for a minute or two. Moving around with your arm like that wasn't too good of an idea. For that, I apologize. I hadn't factored in what would happen if you missed, and for that, I'm… sorry.' _The voice almost seemed to sigh.

Link furrowed his eyebrows and tried to concentrate on anything but the pain. But he wasn't prepared to die, so, the only logical thing would be to try again. And… this time, he would shoot with his right.

The Wind Waker stood up and walked gently towards the insect, who seemed to have forgotten him once again. The boy had left his sword and shield at the doorway, and now he was armed only with his grappling hook.

'_Link! Be careful, will you? If you fail, I don't think you'll be able to try this again!'_

Link nodded. And then, while the monster was turned away from him, he launched the hook at the dragon's tail. With his left arm. ...His _broken_ arm.

And the hook caught—barely, but it caught on, and soon the Wind Waker found himself swinging high towards the other side of the volcanic shaft.

As he let go, the ceiling suddenly collapsed, trapping the magma insect underneath it. A few precious moments went by, and Link found himself holding both his breath and his arm.

Had he done it? Had he really done it?

'_Nice job, kid. You did well for your first Boss Battle. But right now, you need to—'_

The voice cut himself off, because right then, the creature pushed the great Valoo back up. The Fire Monster's armor was slightly cracked now, but it was most certainly alive.

'_Do that about three more times, I'd say.' _The voice sighed, and Link got the sudden impression of a man pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. _'Sorry, kid. I hate that these guys take so much to take down, but… well, being the Hero is never quite what it's ever cracked up to be. I'm guessing you already knew that, though. Right?'_

The boy nodded, and readied his grappling hook once more. He was preparing to throw it, but the voice interrupted his actions.

'_No. Go back to where you were before. You're out in the open and exposed—it's better to have a clear shot and be out of the line of fire whenever you can.'_

The boy sighed, but ran towards the cave once more.

Twice more he did this, each time hurting more than the last, but the voice was a good deal more encouraging than before, reminding him that with every swing, he'd be closer to healing and a glass of water.

That was honestly all that kept him going.

But finally, Link had an opportunity to grapple the tail again. It would be this time, he was sure of it. And it was, indeed, the last time he had to swing across the monster's head. The ceiling collapsed once more, and this time, the Fire Creature did not rise. Instead, there seemed to be a glowing heart nearby.

The Wind Waker grabbed it, and all of his burns were healed. Not his arm, really, but any relief from the agony was good enough for Link at that point.

Besides—once he stepped onto a strange, shimmering platform in the center of the volcano, he found himself floating up and out of the fiery chamber.

000

The Hero of Time couldn't help but sigh in relief. His counterpart had made it out alive, and honestly, he couldn't be happier. It had been a while since he'd saved anyone, after all—it felt nice to be a hero again.

And, he couldn't help but smile at the notion that he'd be getting to help the newest Link more often. Maybe after the boy got his arm fixed up, he could teach him some proper sword-skills. Because, really, the elderly warrior on Outset was pretty good, but he was no Link.

The Hero of Time reached into his back pocket and pulled out an almost forgotten piece of wood—

Zelda's Lullaby was oddly comforting to the boy—especially when played on the Ocarina of Time.


	2. Recovery

**Wow. I actually ended the first chapter of something without a cliffhanger? …Apparently. Anyways. Hope you enjoyed the beginning, and REALLY hoping you'll stay for more, too. I'm a fairly new writer, so be patient, 'kay? I appreciate reviews, so if you could tell me what I'm doing either right or wrong, I would be deeply grateful. **

**So here comes the second chapter. Enjoy!**

000

The moment the Wind Waker got to the top, he was practically tackled by an ecstatic Medli and Komali. And by the way his face screwed up in pain, it wasn't exactly comfortable—especially since Medli insisted on looping her arm through his. And for the record, yes, it _was _his left arm.

But since he wasn't exactly fond of speaking, and didn't really like expressing pain much anyways, he just gritted his teeth and listened to her prattle on.

"You made it out okay!" Medli grinned reverently up at him, a look of wonder and awe that was reflected by Komali. "I was so worried about you—once I heard the first crash, I knew what you were up to, and I called the rest of the council here! The prince and I wanted to be the first to meet you, though!"

Link briefly wondered if she ever ended a sentence without an exclamation mark.

"That was very brave of you, you know," Medli continued, never missing a beat. "I still can't believe that you fought that mean old monster all by yourself!"

The Wind Waker decided not to mention his 'Voice' problem—and not the one about him never talking, either. He smiled, though—he honestly enjoyed the praise, even if it seemed a bit overdone.

After a brief pause from Rito-girl's monologue, Komali spoke up. "I… I think you did pretty good, too. I'm very… grateful to you for giving me," he paused, appearing to be tongue-tied for a moment, "for giving me and every other Rito child on this island a chance to … a chance to earn our wings."

Medli stopped dead in her tracks—her arm bumping hard into Link's at the same time, but thankfully, no one noticed his wince—and faced the prince.

"Could you_ be_ any more formal? Honestly, Komali," she gave him an incredulous stare, "I would have thought you'd be more friendly to him! After all, he _did _just give you a chance to be a great flyer!"

Both Link and Komali stiffened at this. The Wind Waker put up a finger as if to say, 'wait, he doesn't have to do anything that he…' but was interrupted (no surprise there) by Medli.

"I mean, really! He fights a giant lava monster for you, and you couldn't give him a straight-up, 'thank you'?" She crossed her arms at this, and Link almost sighed in relief at her finally letting his arm go free. …This feeling was replaced by pain once more when she pushed the green-clad warrior over to the prince and forced their hands together. For once, the Wind Waker was lucky, because they shook with their right hands.

"I… um, thanks, Link," The Rito Prince said, not able to make eye contact with his hero.

"For…?" the girl added, giving Komali a meaningful glance.

"Thank you, Link, for… for fighting off a gigantic beast and making the Great Valoo happy again, and… and…_ and I want to be just like you!" _The boy blurted out, automatically dropping the Wind Waker's hand and putting both of his hands to his mouth, incredulous that he'd just said something so … sappy.

Link almost sweat-dropped. Really, gratitude was nice and all… but kids making him their new idol? Deciding that they want to be like him? He smiled bashfully at this, nonetheless. It wouldn't do to make the boy any more upset than he already seemed to be.

Medli, however, seemed appeased by Komali's heartfelt sentiment.

"Alright, boys! We're off to see the Council then, yes—?" She stopped mid-sentence, as if just then seeing the Wind Waker's arm. By now, it had swollen considerably and looked more purple than tan. "Why didn't you tell us your arm was hurt?" Medli asked, obviously concerned. She looked like she was either going to strap him to a hospital bed and sing him a lullabye, or smack him for being so reckless.

…Link honestly wasn't sure which he'd prefer.

He simply shrugged, though, which might not have been the best idea. He couldn't hide a wince as his shoulders raised, and it was right about then that he realized that his Voice had been right about the pain being much, much worse once adrenaline wore off.

000

The Hero of Time watched all of this with concern. He'd always hated seeing people in pain, and his young charge was among his least tolerable. In fact, the Wind Waker was right up there with Zelda, Saria, Malon, and Epona. It was all he could do not to say, "_Don't just stand there, you idiot! Go get that thing treated before you make it worse!_"

Unfortunately, though, he wouldn't be able to control the volume too well, and he'd just end up giving the kid a headache, which would defeat the purpose.

Link sighed, leaning back and watching the screen change as the girl took the boy's arm (thankfully she had the sense to take his right arm, and not his _left_) and practically dragged him to the Council. Komali watched from a distance and though he seemed concerned for the hero, he didn't pry and prod like the Rito girl seemed to.

Right about when the Hero of Time was about to take a break, though, Zelda appeared.

She nearly startled him out of his wits, but he took care not to let it show.

"Zelda!" He exclaimed, his face not able to hide his grin. "What are you doing here? I didn't know if anyone was allowed to visit me in here or not."

She just laughed at that. "Of course people can visit you, Link! It would be cruel to leave you here all by yourself. …You just can't leave this area. It wouldn't be a good idea, with the boy's magnetism to danger and all."

The Hero of Time grinned. He couldn't help but agree.

"So. How are things going?" she asked with a smile.

He frowned slightly. "Not great. By the time I even got there, he had managed to break his arm and get himself burned pretty badly. The kid's brave and all, but he's got, like, no experience with battling. I can't exactly blame him, though. He learned to sword-fight with an old man, and, let's face it—he's only twelve."

The Princess of Hyrule raised an eyebrow at that. "I seem to recall someone else," she walked towards Link, knelt behind him, and placed her hands on his shoulders, "starting his adventures at the age of twelve… and he learned how to fight by practicing on rocks, using techniques that a Koriki his age taught him."

"Yeah, well," Link smiled as Zelda began to rub his shoulders, "I still had a more experienced guide. Because, let's face it, Princess. I have no clue what I'm doing."

"Judging by the screen over there, I'm betting that you were good enough to teach him how to slay a giant lava insect thing within the first few minutes that you were there."

The Hero of Time paused for a moment, seeming to consider this. "Yeah, well, I haven't been able to convince the kid to be careful yet. He's reckless! It's like he doesn't even care what happens to him, so long as everyone else gets out fine."

Hyrule's Princess rolled her eyes and stood up, stepping away from him. Her eyes were incredulous. "You don't say. It kind of reminds me of some other reckless hero that I know."

"No…" Link raised an eyebrow. " I was never 'reckless'." He made finger quotes in the air, trying to make his point. "I was simply over-eager."

"And a masochist, too, I suppose?"

The Hero of Time frowned and stood up to face her. "What do you mean by that?" he asked, his pride wounded.

"I _mean_, that either you were either completely selfless, like I personally think, or you were just a glutton for punishment and _enjoyed _getting your butt kicked by giant monsters."

Link crossed his arms. "Not funny. I beat all of them, didn't I?" He ignored the memories of getting cuts, bruises, and even the occasional broken bone.

"Not all of them. That's… why we're here, after all." With that, she turned around and walked though the wall, leaving the Hero of Time alone with his young charge.

000

"Chief! Chief! Come quick, Link's back and he's… he's… he's hurt!" Medli cried, and the entire Rito Council rushed forward as quick as they could. The girl was still clutching his right arm, and was quite frankly a big reason why his arm was _still _hurting.

Komali, however, came to his rescue by calming the excitable young girl down. "Medli, I think you should let go of his arm… you're kind of making it worse."

She reddened at that, but dropped his hand nonetheless.

Link suppressed the urge to sigh in relief, and instead tilted his head to the side as the Rito Council formed a circle around him. One man was a bit taller than the rest and wore a brightly colored headpiece. It was he who examined Link the closest.

"I see you have emerged victorious. We will treat your injury in a moment, but I must ask—what was causing the Great Valoo such discomfort? And, more interestingly, how did you defeat it?"

Link blinked at the man, and spread his arms wide to show the size of the creatures. He then made a few strange movements with his hands, showing the Council the strange 'arms' that the creature had. And after a moment of consideration, he also closed one eye and cupped both hands over the one still open.

The Council of Rito stared at him for a moment, then comprehension dawned on them.

"A Gohma! I should've known," one shouted, while another exclaimed, "I thought they'd been wiped out with the Great Flood!"

Link nodded, remembering the name from an old book that his grandmother had once showed him.

The man wearing the headpiece stared down at the boy. "And pray, how did you manage to defeat such a creature?"

To this, the Hero of Winds turned a bit pink. Looking sheepish, he took out the grappling hook that Medli had given him. Link looked to the ground and held it out for the Rito Council members to see.

"…Incredible. Simply incredible," the Rito man said, almost seeming to disbelieve the boy. But after a short moment of silence, Komali cleared his throat.

"Um, Dad?" He prompted (Link suddenly connected the dots and made an "OOOOOHHHH…" face). "Shouldn't we be getting a certain someone to a healer?"

The rest of the Council of Rito snapped to attention. Some low mumbling erupted amidst the Council (some of it apparently making Medli and Komali turn a bit red), but they quieted down quickly. The Chieftain whispered something into another Rito's ear, and the man nodded.

"A few of my men will be bringing you to the resident healer, but unfortunately I will not be there to escort you, myself. Some business has come up, and it prevents me from seeing you again until around sunset. But that, I assure you, I will be there for." He smiled at Link for a moment, then turned to a few of his men. "You three can spare your duties for the day. You will take this boy to Denaii for healing. Not Molara—_Denaii._" He came closer to the men and spoke in a very low voice, but Link over heard, "She is more gentle," nonetheless. "And make sure you stay with him for long enough to escort him to the meeting place," the Chieftain said in a much louder voice. With that, he nodded and left Link with the three guards, along with Medli and Komali.

'_Great job, kid,' _The voice said in a mixture of pride and another emotion that was hard to place. _'I hadn't gotten the chance to tell you yet, but you did good. After all, that was your very first Boss Battle.'_ The mysterious voice paused for a minute, then continued in a confidential voice. _'I have a feeling that we really shouldn't talk when we're around people, because I can't hear your thoughts, and only you can hear my words. We wouldn't want anyone to think that you're crazy or anything, now would we?' _

Link wasn't sure, but he had the feeling that this was attached to a smirk.

'_So… yeah. But if we really do need to talk in an area like this, I'll just ask you a yes or no question. You can either nod or shake your head. Easier that way, you know?'_

The Hero of Winds nodded, trying to show that he understood.

:0:0:

Once the Wind Waker got to the healer's humble adobe, he immediately cringed.

Not because of the pain in his arm—he'd already gotten pretty much used to that. And even though the interior decorating was absolutely awful, he could get past that.

No—what got Link was all of the needles and vials filled with bright red liquids. He knew that blood wasn't the only red liquid in the world, but… _why, oh why, did they all have to be such bright red? _

He'd be fine with green, or blue, or orange—maybe even purple (though that one would scarce be better, mainly because he's always been slightly intimidated by that particular shade). But red? Link felt woozy even thinking about it.

Unfortunately, the guards had noted the look in his eyes eyes, and while two blocked the door, the third holding firmly to his right arm. The Wind Waker honestly couldn't hide his frown, much less his terror. Komali and Medli, however, just seemed worried. …Medli in particular. She was staring at him for longer than was really necessary, and Link couldn't say that he liked it.

The awkward silence that had fallen over the room upon their arrival, however, was broken when Denaii finally made her appearance, holding (_Joy,_ Link thought dimly) two vials holding red substances, and a small pot of something that let off a bit of green smoke. Seeing the boy's uncomfortable glances at the items, she hastily set them on a low table to her left.

"Hello, young Hero," the Rito woman spoke, her voice betraying what her body could not—age. She was covered in many layers of white and green, with a thick, hooded yellow cloak burying her features. She glanced at the green-clad warrior, and smiled a wizened smile. "I see what the problem is. You are very brave for not showing your pain, but don't worry, child. We won't think bad of you if you cry."

Part of Link stiffened at this, perceiving it as an insult, but another part of him decided that he liked this woman.

"Won't you sit down, traveler?" She motioned the boy to a pale green couch, and he reclined into it hesitantly. "There. That's better. This won't last too long, but it might hurt a little. That arm isn't looking to good, there." The Rito Healer frowned slightly, her eyes softened by compassion. She knelt to the floor and looked into the boy's dark eyes. "You're a courageous little thing, aren't you? Very brave for saving our dear Valoo," she patted him on his (right!) shoulder. "And I have a feeling that you'll do great things in the future, too."

Link couldn't help but smile at this woman. She skilled in complements—not overdone like Medli's, and not overly formal like Komali's. _Plus_, he couldn't help but think, _she's also helping me for free. That's always a bonus._

The healer stood up slowly, and the time for conversation had decidedly ended. "Now, if you'll be a dear and not move too much, or fight what I'm about to do," she said quietly, "I do believe I can help you." The Rito woman very carefully lifted his hurt arm, being even gentler as he winced. She lightly traced the broken bone with her finger, and identified the exact spot of the break. After she seemed to have finished, she gently lowered his arm until it was resting on his lap.

Rising majestically, she turned and retrieved the bowl that seemed to contain green smoke.

The Rito Healer held it out for the boy, and he reluctantly grasped it in his right hand. "Drink this," she said softly. "It will… prevent infection."

Link didn't know how a broken bone could get infected, and he didn't like her hesitation in that sentence, but he firmly decided to trust this woman. He drank from the bowl gingerly, as one would do with a cup that is much too wide and far too shallow.

A few moments passed, and the hero felt increasingly drowsy.

The lady bowed her head and spoke in a soft voice, like someone would do if they were about to sing a lullaby. "Forgive my deception, child. But if I had told you that that was a sleeping drug, I don't think you would have drunk it. It is necessary, though. Broken bones must be bound… and it is never pleasant. You have had one of the worst breaks that we've seen on this island, though. Without this… I'm not sure if you would be able to keep consciousness in such pain." The Rito Healer came closer to the boy, and very gently laid him down, his head resting lightly on a pillow, and his legs curled up. The woman couldn't help but feel even worse when she saw his painstakingly young and innocent this boy was. She couldn't help but whisper a very soft, "…Again, forgive me of my deception, knight."

He lost consciousness very quickly, but fell into a very quiet dream. It was filled with all of the very best things when you need rest—soft colors and the ocean lapping against a beautiful island.

000

The Hero of Time smiled down from his place in the _Realm of Heroes. _It was nice to know that people still had a soft spot for heroes, and it nearly broke his heart to see how kindly the woman had welcomed the Wind Waker into her home.

The child would be safe there, he knew. The entire island (now that it wasn't infected by that awful monster) radiated a warm glow, and in it was love and hope and bravery—exactly what was needed for every civilization.

Right as he was about to nod off, though, a small stack of books appeared next to him.

He wasn't much of a reader, but Link couldn't help but smile at the titles: _Guardianship, _was one's title, and he picked this one up first. _Fighting Strategy and How to Properly Plan an Attack_ was another, and he couldn't help but laugh. Really? He knew all about planning attacks and he _definitely_ knew about fighting strategies. But reading through the table of contents, he found quite a few complex plans that he'd never even heard of. He muttered a very quick, "Thanks, Zelda," before turning his attention to the last book.

On it was a note, and he read the Princess of Hyrule's handwriting with a smile.

_Link: _it said.

_My apologies for being so cold earlier. You know how I am with death. But I hope that these books will be a great resource for you, and may further prevent the child from sharing our fate. It is not doubt that drives my hand, but steadfast faith that I deliver these books to you. _

The Hero of Time laughed lightly at her formality, but quickly resumed his reading as he saw more writing down at the bottom of the perfumed parachment.

_(P.S.— I hope you like the third book. Remember it fondly.)_

Link grinned mischievously at the cover of the book.

An elaborate picture decorated the front, and elaborate gothic handwriting lettered the title: _Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. _

Yes, indeed. The Princess of Hyrule definitely knew how to make her hero feel more confident. He blew the dust off of the cover and opened to the first page, already lost in nostalgia.

000

The Hero of Winds startled awake with an unfamiliar pressure on his left arm, and found himself to be uncomfortably hot with many blankets resting on him. The sun was close to the horizon, and though his mind seemed a bit muddled, he remembered that he was supposed to be somewhere important.

Sitting up quickly wasn't the best thing to do—he saw only black for a few seconds—but it was decidedly better than staying still for too much longer. Indeed—he felt about ready to burst with energy. It had been too long since he'd had a decent night's sleep, and even with only a few hours, Link felt infinitely better.

He glanced at his surroundings for a moment, but was a bit startled to hear voices coming from the other side of the door. The green-clad hero strained to identify the words, but found himself unable. Sighing in frustration, he slid his feet off of the couch and removed the blankets. He moved slower than he would've liked, but although Link felt infinitely better, he didn't want to do anything too hasty.

'_Ah! You're awake, are you?' _the voice said with what could only be a smile in his voice. _'I was wondering when you'd come to. So, how are you feeling?'_

The boy shrugged a little, tentatively prodding the bandage covering a good portion of his left forearm. "Good, I guess…" he mumbled, still a little sleepy from the drugs. "What exactly did she do to me?"

'_Um. I'm not quite sure I should tell you that. Injuries are __**never**__ pleasant, I can tell you that much. But she was gentle. Very, very gentle. She's a kind-hearted woman. Do you think she'd intentionally harm you?' _the voice asked, just a little on the incredulous side.

Link shook his head no, but all the same stuck close to the wall as he made his way over to the door. If he pressed his ear against it, he could almost hear the conversation.

"He should be up by now," a voice said, sounding impatient. "And we don't want to keep the Chieftain waiting."

"Patience!" Link recognized the voice as the Healer woman's. "He will be up when he is ready, and I do not intend to move him until then. He worked hard today, and it looked like he needed a very good rest. You're telling me that the boy who saved your island cannot enjoy even a brief nap?"

The first voice sounded flustered now. "Denaii! We told the Chieftain that he would meet with the boy at sunset, and we need to honor our word. I will not leave without the boy, and I will not be late."

Denaii's voice came again. "Well, prepare to be disappointed. He will get a good rest, and even if he sleeps until tomorrow afternoon, I'm sure that the Chieftain will be fine with that. Let it be known to all that he of all people knows about repaying debts, and quite frankly, I don't think that he'd be coldhearted enough to drag an exhausted boy from bed."

There was the sound of rustling fabric, and Link scrambled to get back to the couch.

Still, she was standing close enough to the door for the green-clad warrior to hear a very distinct, "And if you'll excuse me, I have a patient to check on."

Link closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep when the door opened, then closed behind the Rito Healer. She appeared to be muttering a few curses under her breath, but fell silent as she stepped in front of the young Wind Waker.

"Still sleeping, eh? That is good," she murmured. "You need rest. And if my dosages are correct, and they always are, that arm will be as good as healed by morning's first light."

Denaii walked away slowly, as if not to wake him, and then came back, walking carefully so as not to spill the second dosage of the green potion—mixed with a great deal of one of the red vials, making the mixture look almost brown.

She carefully opened the boy's mouth to pour in the mixture, and he tentatively raised his eyes to her.

"Oh! Awake and alert so soon? My, you're even stronger than I perceived." The healer blinked at him in surprise, then frowned. "I did hope you would rest for longer, though. Your arm needs a bit of tender, loving care, and I'm assuming that you have many other quests to complete, so it's not much of an option. I was going to give you this mixture," she gestured to the bowl of brownish-green liquid still in her hands, "To speed up the healing process. It actually requires sleep, though. The magic cannot work unless the patient, that would be you," Denaii smiled slyly, "rests for at least fourteen hours, maybe more. It is partially fairy-dust, but it is old—still left over from the old times, so it's not as potent as it once was. If I had fresh fairy-dust… now _that_ would be a mixture," she sighed wistfully. "But this is what we have to work with.

She glanced at the young hero, who had almost dozed off again at her rambling. Smiling, the Rito Healer placed her hand on the boy's shoulder. "I do pray you'd forgive me for my deception, once again. It was wrong of me to lie to you. But I ask you now, if you would not stay for the required time? The Chieftain is impatient to see you, yes, but I'm sure he could meet you on your way to your next adventure. Try as he might, the man's definitely not as harsh as he presents himself." She paused wistfully, then cleared her throat. "What I'm trying to say is, do you accept? Will you accept this potion, and stay here for as long as necessary?"

Link paused a moment. He glanced up at the sky, and his voice came in, right on cue.

'_Yes. You need a decent night's sleep, and you definitely need your arm taken care of. If you don't take up her sped-up version, it might take an entire month to heal on its own. She's already set the bone, but I doubt that you'll be able to use a sword properly for a long while unless you take her up on her offer.' _The voice seemed to sense the boy's hesitation. _'Kid, you'll be safe here. Trust me. Right now, I could see pretty much everything on this island, if I wanted to. There's no one up to mischief, excepting Medli and Komali… who are doing a few things that their parents might not approve of right now. But believe me, you'll be fine if you stay here. Better than fine, actually, because you'll be healed a thousand times faster. You'd be an idiot not to take her up on her offer.' _

Link sighed, taking the voice into consideration, then nodded slowly.

Denaii smiled, and handed the mixture to the boy. "I apologize for the taste, Hero. It's… a lot stronger than the other mixture, and not as sweet. But it's more potent and will keep you asleep and recovering for the required time."

No sooner than she had finished speaking did Link drift off into a sleep much deeper than he had been in before.

The Rito Healer took the bowl from his hands and laid him out on the couch, putting the blankets back on him. The Hero of Winds snored just slightly, and Denaii was reminded once more of the child's innocence and age.

"Sleep well, Hero," she murmured. "I pray that you will be better when you awake."

_End of Chapter 2_

_Okay. Um. This one's a lot longer than Chapter 1, but it was pretty fun to write. Except for the Guard's parts. And the Chieftain's part. Oy. Those Rito Formals are annoying, ain't they? _

_Review for more over-the-top, exclamatory Medli. ;) _


	3. To Forest Haven

When Link awoke, there was an unfamiliar stiffness all around him. Still, the late morning sun shone through a window, and he pulled himself awake. Stretching, he was amazed to find that his arm was perfectly fine, though it was still bandaged. He gingerly poked it, just to be sure.

Feeling no pain from it, Link smiled and swung his feet out of his makeshift bed.

"LINK!" a familiar voice shouted, and he found himself immediately tackled by Medli. "You're awake! How are you feeling? I hope you're feeling good, because today, you're meeting with the Chieftain! What a great honor!"

Although breathing was made slightly uncomfortable with her arms completely restricting his air supply, he smiled. It was a pretty cool honor, wasn't it?

"You even get to wear the ceremonial clothes!"

…

Good feeling gone.

Link linked once, and the smile on his face immediately vanished. Medli seemed to sense this, and laughed.

"Well, it's not like you're wearing anything but your underwear right now! Your normal clothes are being washed, anyways!"

One glance at himself, and our no-longer-green-clad hero realized that she was telling the truth. He coughed once and, trying not to panic, he covered himself with one of the many blankets that he had previously been wearing.

Medli would have none of this. Although she wouldn't tell anyone, she had already taken a few pictures of him in her Picto-Box.

It was then that Komali walked in with what Link assumed he would be wearing. The Rito Prince saw her practically groping the Island's Champion and sighed in frustration.

"Medli. Off," he commanded, and since Valoo's young attendant couldn't refuse a direct order, she had to obey. With a frown, she removed herself from the Outset boy. Link, on the other hand, couldn't have possibly liked Komali any more than he did at that moment.

Link mouthed a silent, 'Thank you!', and while Komali tried to figure out how the hero added an exclamation mark onto a mouthed sentence, he mouthed, 'Welcome,' back, anyways.

"So. How're you doing, Link?" he asked, and the boy gave a thumbs up, examining his no longer hurt arm. "I don't think I need to ask you how you slept. Fifteen hours is a long time, after all." Komali smiled again, and handed the hero the clothes he would be wearing for the next hour or so.

Link, however, looked around the room nervously. The Rito Prince understood immediately, and grabbed Medli's arm. "I don't think he wants an audience, Medli," he whispered to her. She sighed and followed Komali out the door, but not before giving the Hero of Winds one last suggestive wink.

Link gave a half-wink in return. It is more commonly known as an eye-twitch.

Still, he quickly composed himself, and in no time, he was dressed in the Rito finest. Granted, he thought it a bit silly that he had to wear a rubber beak and fake wings, but that was better than making him go to whatever 'ceremony' they had in mind in just his underwear.

And, on the plus side, it was green. Couldn't forget that.

'_Hey. Good to see you up. How are you…' _The voice stopped. _'Oh my… what in Din's name are you wearing?'_

"…What? My clothes are being washed, and they want me to go to some Rito Ceremony anyways. Why shouldn't I wear it?" Link frowned, crossing his arms at the voice.

'_You look like a bird! You have feathers, a beak, and…'_ the voice seemed to put a hand to his forehead. _'I've been trying, for, like, two generations, to keep people from thinking that all Links are gay. Are you _trying_ to cancel out all of my efforts?' _

Link blinked. "What? It looks cool!" He stopped for a minute, indignant. Then, something occurred to him. "And… what did you mean by, 'All Links,'?"

The voice didn't answer for a minute. _'I'm, um, guide to the various Links.'_

The Wind Waker raised an eyebrow. "Right. So… does that mean you're a fairy? 'Cause you really don't sound like a fairy."

'_You know what? Screw it. I don't have to explain myself to you! I'm the reason you got out of there alive. Why do you have to ask so many questions?'_

Link just shook his head and walked from the room. "Forget about it." As an afterthought, he turned deliberately to the sky. "And this outfit does not look gay!"

0:0:0

When he stepped out of the room to meet his friends (Well. The kind of friends that seem to enjoy causing him pain), he couldn't help but wonder why Komali was staring at him with such a weird look in his eyes.

Medli, however, was grinning. As usual. And looking directly at certain areas of his anatomy. "You look great, Link! You should wear feathers more often!"

The green in his costume did little to neutralize the red that now colored his face—if anything, it magnified it. Link awkwardly scratched the back of his head, feeling sweat dripping down the side of his face.

Thankfully, Denaii suddenly burst through the door.

"Ah! Good to see you up, Link," she said with a smile. It was then that she noticed exactly what he was wearing. "…Interesting. You're a bit short for that tunic, though."

The Hero of Winds glanced over to Komali for assistance, but the Rito Prince just shrugged. "It looks like a dress on you. I honestly don't know what the Chieftain was thinking."

Medli just crossed her arms and stared at them. "You guys are so mean! _I_ think he looks absolutely adorable in it!" and she beamed at the boy. The sweat dripping down his forehead got about twice as thick in three seconds.

But never one to protest, Link just made a slightly scared (okay, terrified) expression, and backed against the wall.

The Rito Healer rolled her eyes at the nonsense. "Really, children? You're off to participate in a formal ceremony in just a few minutes. It would do you well to show a little restraint." She glanced over to Link, then sighed. "I suppose it's time to take that bandage off."

000

The Hero of Time looked up from his book and glanced at the screen. He tried not to laugh at the boy's costume, but it was unsuccessful. And judging by the glare that the Wind Waker was giving no one in particular, he heard it. _Ah, well,_ the Hero of Time thought, _I should probably be glad he can hear everything in here. _He went back to his book.

It was then that he remembered Zelda's visit. Had the boy heard that? No, no, he couldn't have. They were speaking quietly, right? Right. The kid hadn't said anything about it, anyways.

Sometimes, Link wondered why he even bothered to keep the Hero of Winds from knowing about his identity. It would solve a whole lot of problems, both friendship and mentor-wise. But something told him that the boy wouldn't really appreciate knowing that he was being mentored by a dead guy. And remembering the Wind Waker's terrified reaction to the Gohma (not to mention the vials in the Healer's house), he was scared of an awful lot.

'There you go, knight,' came the Rito Healer's voice, and Link glanced back up at the screen, just in time to see the boy examining his arm, something not easy to do in a dress with such long sleeves. Thankfully, though, Link kept that thought to himself and didn't project it into the boy's head.

000

The trip to the ceremony grounds was uneventful (except for, naturally, more exclamatory remarks from Medli), but when they got there, Link couldn't help but stare at the beauty of the cliff before him.

They had climbed up to the very top of the volcano, and were standing before Valoo, but the Hero of Winds couldn't bring himself to look at the dragon. How could he, when everything around him seemed to shine? The wind was swirling around the small party, and it seemed to carry music on it.

Link's senses were practically overloading with the beauty of everything.

A moment passed, and then Valoo spoke.

Naturally, the Hero of Winds didn't understand, but a moment later, Komali presented him with the ornament he'd been carrying when they first met. It glowed softly in the moonlight, but what was most noticeable were the engravings on the side closest to Link.

The green-clad (even if it was a dress) hero blinked, and turned his head to the side, as if to ask, 'Are you sure?'

Komali smiled. "Giving you the thing I love the most will give me the courage to do great things."

And just like that, Link took it.

In that moment, he understood. This was what he needed to fulfill his quest.

It was the first pearl—the one he'd been looking for for almost three days. The Hero of Winds smiled, and looked towards the faces of the people of the island. He held Din's Pearl close to him.

The dragon roared something, and the Chieftain nodded to whatever Valoo was saying.

Then all eyes turned to Link, and suddenly all heads were bowed to him in a sign of respect. It was at that moment that the King of Red Lions spoke to him through the stone that Tetra gave him.

'_Link,'_ the King said, urgency in his voice, _'The Mighty Valoo is telling you that it is time to move forward. Gather your belongings. We are headed for the next pearl.' _

The crowd of people around him must have heard, for Medli came forward, carrying his faded green tunic, now clean. With it was his sword, along with his grappling hook and quite a few other items that he vaguely recalled getting.

He smiled at her, and at that moment, she hugged him as fiercely as she could.

"Link!" she whispered, and although he wondered how she could exclaim in a whisper, he wasn't about to ask. "Promise me you'll come back! Do you promise?" The green-clad hero said nothing, but put his arms around her. She sniffled and broke away from him, staring directly into his eyes. Link found himself unable to do anything but nod that, yes, he would come back.

He promised.

0:0:0

Not five minutes later, he was dressed and back in the King of Red Lions, setting sail for Forest Haven.

The wind was blowing due south, and although it kept pushing Link's hair into his face, he didn't really mind. He was moving again, and that was what mattered. Just another step closer to saving his sister. And, you know, everyone else.

Having slept for more than long enough, Link felt good to go for at least twenty four hours. He quite frankly had a feeling that whatever they put in that potion would give him staying power. Either that, or it was caffeine all the way through.

The last rays of the sunset

The Hero of Winds turned his gaze towards the stars and tried to pinpoint a few different constellations. He had just found a giant horse and was trying to remember the legend associated with it when he heard his boat speak.

"You did well, young hero," the King of Red Lions said with what could only be a smile, though his voice was faded slightly because he was still facing forward. "There are few that have ever lived from an encounter with a Gohma. In fact, the only ones that ever had worn the same green tunic that you do now." He paused. "Well, not the same one. The cloth for the other tunics was always a bit thinner than that, but you'll be glad of the extra warmth if we ever bump into Ice Ring Isle. Not that it would help _that _much anyway, but…" The boat trailed off, then seemed to remember what he'd been saying. "What I mean to say is that I am proud of you, Hero. You are just what this land needs to be restored. So many villains in the world, now. They need someone to challenge them. And most of all, they need that person to be you. Yes, you may be young, but it gives them all the more hope for the future. 'If a child can do this much,' they say, 'Then surely we can do something, too!'"

Link smiled, then embraced what could only be considered the boat's 'neck'. He didn't like talking, not really, but there were other ways to express affection.

The moment passed. With all that had been said (and not 'said' but expressed nonetheless), it was quiet then.

The Hero of Winds stared back at the stars, and for once, felt good about being a hero.

000

Night had fallen in the Realm of Heroes, too, and the Ocarina of Time player was lounging against the wall to the back of the room. He was reading his own story (he never claimed to be humble, after all), reminiscing about his adventures.

Whenever he'd get to the parts where he'd learn a new song, Link would pick up his Ocarina and play whatever it was, just for old times' sake.

He's just played Epona's song when he felt a sudden disturbance across the screen. The Hero of Time started at the portal in front of him and looked all around the boat on the water.

Sure enough, there were shark fins sticking out of the water.

000

'_Hey! Predator alert,' _the voice said, loud and clear. And in contrast with the quiet all around, it startled Link so badly that he almost fell out of the boat. _'Get out some cannons or… something!'_

"I don't have cannons," the boy whispered to the sky.

"What was that, Link?" the King of Red Lions asked, interrupting the conversation. He'd never heard the boy speak before, so it was a bit of a surprise to hear anything from him. However, when the boat curled his neck around to look at his passenger, the boy just shrugged.

'_Um. Sorry. I forgot to ask you a simple yes or no question. So, I gather that you don't have a cannon yet?'_

Link shook his head, no.

'_Hm. That's a downer. What about a boomerang?'_

Again, no.

'_Wow. Sorry to say this, kid, but you're screwed. I suggest seeing if you can make the wind blow faster. …Either that, or have your shield ready. Maybe see if you can jump over them?' _And then the voice quieted once more.

Link sighed, but he got out the magic baton and his shield anyways. And as luck would have it, it didn't make the wind go any faster to make it go in the same direction multiple times.

"Are you done playing with that, yet?" the King of Red Lions asked, irritation lacing his voice. "It's not a toy, you know. It's magical. I doubt it will run out of magic, but we wouldn't want to find out."

He quieted for a moment, then seemed aware of the sharks around them.

"Link! Sharks all around us!" the boat said in a loud voice. It was all Link could do not to laugh. 'Really?' he wanted to say. 'You're just now noticing that?' But because he halfway respected the boat, he said nothing, just as always.

"I don't think we have any weapons at our disposal. They won't get close enough for you to use your sword, so keep your shield ready at all times." Link nodded, shield having been ready for the last minute and a half.

"Wait! I have an idea!" the boat suddenly shouted. "Press A to jump over the sharks!"

The Wind Waker just stared at the magical talking boat.

"…I apologize. I honestly don't know where that came from." He coughed, seemingly bashful. "What I meant to say is get a good grip with your toes and keep one hand on the rudder-controller, and jerk it up when you want to jump."

Link blinked, then nodded, getting a solid grip on the rudder-controller. When one shark got too close, he jerked it up, and the boat soared a few feet into the air. The green-clad hero honestly wasn't sure how the physics of that worked, but he wasn't (as usual) about to say anything.

They tried this again and again on their way to Forest Haven, and by the time they were nearly there, Link could do it without even planting his feet on the ground.

(Which he quickly learned was not such a good idea—his clothes took almost two hours to dry, and he was lucky that a shark didn't bite him while he was in the water.)

When they docked beside the lowest platform on the Forest Island, it was early morning, and the sun's rays were streaming through the clouds. Link stretched for a moment before hopping out of the boat and onto the low platform.

"Remember, young hero. You are to retrieve the pearl at all costs. No exceptions. No matter what you have to do could compare with what's going to happen if you fail."

No pressure there.

The Hero of Winds nodded before jogging off, past the mailbox, and onto the next platform.

His first welcome to this island? A giant Venus Fly Trap that, for reasons unknown, seemed to want to eat him. Link shrieked and jumped back.

Right back onto the platform with his mailbox.

A moment passed, and although he'd landed on his butt, it was only his pride that'd been wounded. Ignoring his boat's laughter (how, he wondered, that _a boat_ could laugh was beyond him), he hopped back onto the Venus Fly Trap platform, this time with his sword out.

Thankfully, though, this creature wasn't too well built and it didn't take more than two seconds to figure out how to fight it.

The creature's neck was far too thin to support a head that large, so separating the two halves of its body wasn't an issue. (Link preferred that term to, well, 'chopping its head off').

With a smile, he walked forward. And then his eyes widened when he saw an entire row of those creatures. He slipped a sidelong glance to his boat (who looked far too innocent to be inconspicuous) before moving forward.

It didn't take more than a minute or two, but once all of the creatures were destroyed, he found a big, green and purple seed laying where one of the Venus Fly Traps had been. He waved it in the air, and thankfully his boat was still within range.

"That's a Boko-Baba seed. They're absolutely worthless unless you put them with the right ingredients and heat them up. After that, they're magical. You don't have a container for magic right now, though…" The King of Red Lions seemed to consider something. "But it is high time for you to go inside."

Link frowned, but hurried forward anyways.

A few misadventures (mainly consisting of misjudging his landing spot while using the grappling hook, and for some inexplicable reason managing to tick off a weird looking squid thing) later, he arrived at a hollow cavern and he guessed that he was supposed to go inside.

The spring of water that trailed from the inside-out was clean and fresh, though, and he couldn't help but stop for a short drink. It was in this break that he heard a low moan.

Immediately, the Hero of Wind's head jerked up, and he found himself running towards a tree that seemed to have a giant face carved into it. On the face, however, were many green and red jelly creatures (he'd dubbed them 'Chus' just because it was cute, but he wasn't about to tell anyone _that_).

He wondered what he could do for a moment, but while running towards the tree, he slipped and crashed into the tree. Thankfully, he had time to turn an otherwise painful skid into a poorly executed somersault.

Immediately, the jelly creatures fell off of the tree.

It didn't take long for the Chus to realize that they didn't stand a chance against the boy with the sword. Still, they didn't want to go out without a fight. They each got a few slaps in, but they were about as effective as being hit by a wet noodle, so our hero didn't get so much as a bruise from the fight (if you could call it that).

When the last of the creatures fell, the green-clad warrior darted around, collecting the various jellies that he found there. The green jelly was new, so he didn't know what, exactly, it would be good for, but he put it in his bait bag nonetheless.

When he was done, he started to walk forwards.

And then the tree began to talk.

Granted, he was speaking in a language that Link didn't understand, but that didn't exactly stop him from being frightened. But the shock more or less paralyzed the young hero, so he didn't attack the tree. Instead, he just stared up at the face (now realizing that it was a great deal more than a carving) with an expression of puzzlement.

The tree blinked at him a few times, then laughed.

"I must apologize. I was in error. I saw your clothing and suddenly I felt a longing for an age gone by…

Link wondered for a moment if his outfit was really the most impressionable thing about him. Honestly! Even back at his own home people only commented about his outfit and how warm it must have been, not to mention what Tetra had said.

The lily pad that Link had been standing up suddenly rose. Link decided it was time to pay attention.

"That longing caused the ancient tongue to pass my lips." The Tree looked inexplicably sad for a moment, but then spoke again. "I am the guardian spirit of this Forest Haven—the Deku Tree. I owe you my thanks for your aid in ridding me of those foul creatures… Tell me… Was it not the King of Red Lions—the boat who speaks—who led you to this place?"

Link nodded. This was getting a little weird, and honestly, his boat could've told him that he was about to meet a giant talking tree… but he wasn't about to (as usual…) say anything.

"So it is true. Then you have come here because you have need of the Pearl of the Goddess?" Link nodded again, and the Deku Tree stared at him in depth. "I see… I knew there was a reason the monsters had begun to congregate in the regions around my wood. Now I understand it."

A silence fell over him for a moment, and then his face was graver than ever. "He has returned. Ganon has returned… in that case, we must make haste!" And then, his voice was a roar, carrying out to the edges of the forest. "Koroks! Little children of the woods! This traveler is not your enemy. Let your hearts be at ease, and show yourselves!"

The moment his words stopped, there were suddenly many little creatures floating down to rest on what could only be considered the Deku Tree's brow. Link stared in surprise. He hadn't exactly thought that the tree had been speaking to himself, nor had he thought that it was schizophrenic… but still. He hadn't exactly expected the creatures to be there.

Upon closer examination, however, the Wind Waker determined that the little creatures were kind of cute, if a bit wooden-looking. They all wore masks made from leaves, and in the leaves were scratched different faces. Granted, some of them creeped him out a little, but still. They were, in all, kind of cute.

Then they jumped off of the Deku Tree. Well. 'Jumped off' isn't quite right. It has a gravity-is-working connotation. 'Jumped twenty feet into the air without breaking a sweat' is more apt. But right as Link was about to say, 'No! Wait! Suicide is not the answer!', the creatures brought out some strange type of leaf, which they used as miniature helicopter blades. Needless to say, their decline lasted much longer than one would think.

"What do you call yourself?" the Deku Tree asked, and though our protagonist never so much as said his name, the tree seemed to guess it correctly. "Link? Well, then, Link… These are the Koroks—the spirits of the forest."

The Koroks landed, circling the young hero. He was, as always, a bit intimidated to find that they were surrounding him, but he figured that he'd be able to take them if they tried anything funny. He put his hand on his sword hilt just to be safe, though.

"Once upon a time, long ago, the Koroks took on human forms, but when they came to live on the sea, they took these shapes." The Deku Tree was suddenly sad. "Now they fear people… but to me, they will ever be my cherished little children."

Link couldn't help but share the Deku Tree's sympathy. He hadn't read all of the legends… but he was fairly certain that these were one in the same as the Kokiri, Children of the Forest, that the Legendary Hero grew up with. He was about to speak, to ask what exactly happened, but the Tree interrupted him.

"As if happens, you have come just in time for a ceremony that the Koroks hold but once every year. It is about to begin."

000

The Hero of Time stared at the screen in front of him. He couldn't believe it. No, he _wouldn't_ believe it. These were his friends! The people who raised him! How did it even happen, he couldn't help but wonder.

His eyes closed tightly in an effort to hold back tears. He hadn't seen one of the Koroks in particular, and was immediately worried for his best friend.

_Saria…_ What had happened to her? Was she still alive? And did she call herself Saria? Did she still play the Ocarina? Link was halfway to panic, and with his mind reeling, it didn't seem like it'd take long to get that second half. But he took a deep breath because if he failed…

He stopped himself from crying. It would do him no good, anyways. He couldn't change the past, but… by saving this child, he could make the future better. And maybe… maybe everything would be okay again.

Link forced himself to look back at the screen.

The Koroks were dancing around the Great Deku Tree, but when another slowly descended from the sky, the Hero of Time knew something was amiss.

000

"W-We are not, oh Great Deku Tree. It is Makar! Makar!" one of the Koroks shouted, and the one falling from the sky dropped right into the circle.

"What is the matter, Linder?" the Tree asked. "You and Makar are always late…"

Linder seemed a bit shaken, and its voice proved it. "N-No! It is not that, Oh Great Deku Tree! Makar has fallen into the Forbidden Woods!"

Silence descended upon both the Koroks and the Tree (I'd mention Link, too, but silence can't descend upon him when he's never loud to begin with…). It made the Deku Tree's booming voice seem all the louder.

"What? The Forbidden Woods?" he bellowed, and the entire cavern shook.

Linder's tiny, brittle voice was barely audible in the resounding echoes of the Tree's outburst. "I told him to be careful! But still Makar flew above the Forbidden Woods. And as he drew close to it…" it trailed off.

"Foolish little Makar…" the Tree said, almost a whisper. Then, he spoke directly to the young hero. "Link, you have heard all this?" The boy nodded. "The Forbidden Woods are right beside the hallowed island of our Forest Haven. Those woods… The whole region is a vile place that is home to evil beasts."

Link guessed what was coming next.

"And now it seems they have taken a child of the forest named Makar. …Your presence here is no mistake, I deem."

A new assignment was coming… coming…

The King of Red Lions likely expects great deeds of you—it is why he brought you here. I am sorry to ask this of you,"

Link could almost picture the woods already, and a feeling of dread was creeping over his small frame…

"But can you go rescue young Makar for me?"

And, of course, even though he was practically shaking with fright, the young Outsetter nodded his head, that, yes, of course he'd go on some death-defying rescue mission just to save some little kid dumb enough to get himself in danger in the first place.

The Deku Tree smiled at the young hero. He was about to congratulate him, but suddenly Linder spoke up.

"But, Great Deku Tree! …People cannot fly through the air…"

The Tree paused for a moment, seeming to think. "Ah, yes… Thank you, child. You are right. It is not possible to enter those woods from the sea, is it…" He stared at the boy in front of him, still standing shell-shocked on the floating lily-pad.

"Link, I would guess from your size that you are heavier than my Korok children… yet I think that we may still be able to solve this dilemma. You must use the item I shall bestow upon you and fly through the sky!"

The Tree's face contorted in pain, and suddenly, with a great exhale, a glowing leaf appeared.

…On one of the highest branches of the tree.

…And the tree was pretty high up…

…And there didn't seem a way up to it, either…

"Hmph!" the Deku Tree grunted. "Forgive me, Link, but could you climb up to my crown and get the leaf from up there?"

…

Sometimes, the Hero just never gets a break.

XXX

**Heh. I did NOT like those Venus Fly Trap things. Or, Boko Babas. Or whatever those blasted things are. Just remember—this is largely based off of my adventures in the Wind Waker, and quite frankly, my hand-eye-coordination needs work. I play videogames mainly for the story-lines, so… yeah. That's why I enjoy writing about games more than playing them. **

**Enjoy the chapter! And please, PLEASE review!**


	4. The Dangers of Flower Cannons

Ever been launched from a plant? No? Then I highly doubt you'd be able to relate to the young Wind Waker, who was doing one of the strangest things he'd ever thought a person could do.

Well. It didn't quite compare to being launched from a cannon at a creepy-looking fortress but both had to do with being thrown into the air, and unfortunately…

"Hrrk!" Link grunted, rubbing his sore behind after landing hard on the ground _again._

…neither included a soft landing.

But he had to get that leaf, and there was absolutely no way he'd consent to going this far already just to fail on an adventure that he hadn't even started, yet.

"You're doing great, Link," the one they called Irch shouted down to the Wind Waker. "Just try to tilt your body _towards_ the next pod, and then you'll do even better!"

Thankfully, the Korok was too high up to hear the quiet profanity muttered by the supposed 'Hero'.

'_Hey! Don't talk like that. What would your Grandma think? You're saving your sister, remember?' _the voice called to the hero, and Link just squinted at the sun through the thick leaves. Never one for quitting, though, the green-clad warrior hopped back into the pod.

…Only to be tossed back on the ground for the umpteenth time that day. He winced as he stood back up, wondering if this was the landing that finally shattered his tailbone. Gingerly, he sat down on the softer parts of the forest, ignoring the whispers of the various Koroks.

With a deep breath, he took off his boots, which were, by now, caked with mud. Link clapped them together on the ground beside him. He would've rinsed them in the stream, but he had a feeling that it wouldn't go over too well with the locals. (He could just _hear _the cries of, 'We drink from that water, you moron!' and quite frankly, he didn't want to put up with that.)

Instead, he cupped his hands and drank some of the spring-water. It was surprisingly cool for the hot climate of the forest.

A moment later, he reclined onto his back. To his surprise, he found no pain in his tailbone. Link stood up very quickly and glanced around the forest. He could've sworn it'd been very badly bruised just a moment ago…

'_That's Forest Haven water. It's famous for being able to heal.' _The voice said with a smile. '_Drink a little more. You're probably thirsty, anyways.' _Link obeyed, more than happy (for once) to follow the advice.

Not a minute later, he felt completely replenished. Pleasantly confused, he tilted his head to the side and glanced up at the sky.

'_Like I said, it's famous for its magical healing powers.' _The voice stopped for a minute. _'I don't recommend having it too often, though. If you have too much of it in your system in combination with a fairy, your hair will turn pink. And yes, I've seen it happen.'_

Link practically leaped back from the spring. Still, he felt good enough to go back to the plant and remake the bruises he'd previously gathered.

After about four more failed attempts (one of them landing on his back, to which the mysterious voice ordered him to drink some more water), he finally got to the second plant.

It launched him straight up in the air a few times, but Link was too scared to go further. He was higher up from there, after all.

'_Dude. There's only one way down, and only one way up. Just do what you did before, alright?' _And Link gulped. Squeezing his eyes shut, he prepared for the next launch.

By some miracle, he landed in the next flower pod. Unfortunately, he hadn't gotten so much as a glimpse of where the next pod was. It might've had something to do with the fact that his eyes had been closed the entire time.

The flower pod shot him into the air once more, and he tentatively opened one eye. _Bad, bad idea. _He was too high up to get away unscathed. Or come out just bruised, for that matter. If he was lucky, he'd get _just _a sprained ankle or wrist. And he did _not_ want to risk breaking his neck if he tried to do the rolling trick from this high up.

'_Kid. Don't sweat it. I'll guide you. Just turn a little bit to your left.'_ The voice reassured him, and Link cautiously shifted his body to that side. _'That's too much. Go back just a tiny bit,'_ and once more he turned. _'That should launch you in the right direction. Wait for the next jump.'_

And the young hero was terrified out of his wits, but he knew that the voice hadn't failed him yet. So, when the flower launched him into the air, he tucked further into himself and felt the sensation of falling… falling…

And landing safely within the next pod.

'_Nice job, kid. You're almost to a resting spot, just one more to go before a break. Think you can handle it?' _

Link nodded, though he wasn't sure how the voice could see it, being in the pod and all.

'_Good. Okay, move to the right. I don't know how, but you managed to land backwards.' _Link turned. _'A little more, a little more… stop! That's perfect.'_

And so, the Hero of Winds landed safely on a treetop, with Irch practically hovering over him, asking him all sorts of useless questions that he didn't reply to.

000

The Ocarina of Time player let out a breath that he didn't know he'd been holding. It was terrifying to know that he was in charge of the kid's entire fate. And having to lead him though the flower pods? Scarier than facing it himself. Because, if it were him? He would've had Navi to tell him.

Link never knew how hard it would be to be a guide. To know that one wrong direction, one flaw in a plan, and you could be hosing your charge's funeral.

But he calmed himself, and glanced towards the three story high tree branch, where the boy sat safely, with his legs still pulled close to him. The Hero of Time couldn't help but smile. He could only imagine how much adrenaline the kid must have had flowing through him right then. To know that he could be falling from so high up must have been scary beyond all reason.

But hey. It felt good to know that someone besides Zelda still trusted him.

Although… he wasn't sure if she still should. After all, wasn't it his fault that she was here with him?

Link rested his chin on one hand and stared at the ground.

It really wasn't fair of him to beat himself up like that, he knew very well. The princess told him that often enough, anyways. But there were some things that time just couldn't heal, especially when immortality came into play.

A quick glance up to the screen, however, forced him from his thoughts. The young hero was once more looking up to the sky, and Link assumed that the boy was ready to move on.

Maybe he should do the same…

"All right, kid. Time to get going, right?" the Hero of Time looked followed the boy's gaze. "Ah. I see. Well, the problem's simple, really. The thing's too far away for you to jump, right? Well, this'd be about the time to get out your grappling hook, and…"

Yes, the Hero of Time was (once more) back to business.

000

Link, following directions, got out the grappling hook that Medli had given him. He aimed it, and by some stroke of luck, hit his target and found himself swinging towards the flower. He was just about to let go when the voice yelled at him.

'_No! Stop the rope! If you jump off right now, I swear to Nayru you'll fall and break every bone in your body. And if the last time you broke a bone was anything to consider, I don't think you'd want to have to waste however many days it would take to pull your shattered remains back together!'_

The voice stopped for a minute, and Link could've sworn he heard some panic-y breathing at the other end of the line, so to speak.

'…_Sorry, that was kind of graphic, wasn't it?'_ Link nodded ever so slightly. _'What I meant to say was that you need to line up the rope right. Believe me, it isn't very fun when you miscalculate where you're going to end up and then… well, graphic descriptions make themselves true. So, stop the rope and line it up right.' _The young hero complied, and, inch by inch, moved slightly to the right. _'Good. Stop there. Now… swing back and forth, but keep a good grip.' _

And while Link tried very hard, the truth was that his arms were getting rather tired. One must remember that this was an Outset boy—never properly trained for this kind of thing. But he wasn't as badly prepared as one might assume. Holding a sword amongst many other heavy objects (like, say, a shield that must weigh as much as him) eventually gives you muscles, no matter how small. Still, he barely managed to hold on long enough to make the jump.

'_Nice. Now, just stay there for a minute. It'll launch you into the air a couple times, but as you know, so long as you don't move in any direction, you'll be fine.' _

Quite frankly, Link was more than okay with that. He almost enjoyed the wind whipping through his hair (indeed, he would've lost his hat, had he not already taken it off and been holding it tightly against his chest), though the height-thing was still a bit freaky. Once he caught his breath, though, he knew it was time to move forward.

The disembodied voice seemed to agree.

'_Alright, kid. Move to the right, 'kay?' _And by then, they seemed in tuned to eachother enough so that the voice didn't even have to correct the boy five times of 'how much' he had to go to the right.

A few jumps later, and Link, though he landed on his back, landed on solid ground once more. Well, as solid as flimsy leaves could get, anyway.

'_Nice job, Link. Now, just grab the leaf and follow the signs.' _

The Hero of Winds couldn't help but wonder for a minute exactly what he meant. "What?" he asked with an incredulous glance to the sky.

'_Kid, what's the most obvious thing that the Deku Tree could show you right now?' _the voice asked, and Link detected signs of an eye-roll in his message.

It was then that the young hero saw the giant arrow written with grass. His mouth formed an 'O' and he stood at the very edge of the tree's platform.

And then he jumped.

…Unfortunately, he should've waited for the voice's instructions, because while the jump in itself was nice, and he even got the magical leaf out in time, but the landing…

Link saw the ledge approaching and let out a cry of victory. To both guardian and charge's dismay, in that cry of victory, he jumped.

Now, it seemed as if he would've caught the ledge in his descent. It had really, really seemed like it. But, unfortunately, the boy now saw that everything wasn't as it seemed. Thankfully, though, the boy heard a loud cry from a place he didn't know.

'_Jump as far forward as you can, you idiot! Stick your hands out in front of you!' _

These instructions came barely, barely in time. But in time they managed to come, anyways. And with fingertips on the furthermost point of the cliff's ledge, Link started the difficult task of pulling himself fully onto the surface.

0:0:0

And, wouldn't you know it, the moment he stepped through the dim archway, there was another Korok waiting for him.

"Wow!" the child of the forest exclaimed, "You made it here this fast?"

The young hero rolled his eyes and was about to say something along the lines of, 'you mean how slow?', but, as always, was interrupted. "Anyways, you can't get to the Forbidden woods from here. You have to get to that island over there," the Korok pointed to an island too far away for Link's taste, "and then you have to get caught in that cyclone in order to raise you up high enough to get to the forest," and by then, the hero's hopes had crashed and burned with no hopes of returning.

With legs shaking, he took one step forward, off the edge of the cliff, and discovered that he had no magic.

As Link plummeted into the ocean, he could've sworn he heard a SMACK sound coming from somewhere else.

000

The Hero of Time face-palmed. How was he supposed to know that the boy had been out of magic? Groaning, he watched as the boy, Outsetter he thankfully was, put his arms out correctly so that he wouldn't get hurt from the dive.

Really, Link had the feeling that he should give those Self-Help (to Help Others) books a second glance. Or at least have some way to monitor how much magic and energy the boy had at all times.

…Suddenly, gages that looked an awful lot like those strange 'heart' containers popped up on the screen. There were four, and underneath, an outline of a green bar appeared.

He had no real clue why those were important, but for some reason, the green bar was empty, and once the boy hit the water, the 'hearts' dropped down to three.

000

A soggy Link dragged himself from the ocean and onto the rocks. And just as he managed to slump against one, clutching the oversized stone like some kind of lifeline, one of the cyclones came his way.

Thankfully, though, the gust of wind not only dried his clothes (something he wasn't truly grateful until later, when he had to walk a few miles with boots dripping wet that gave him awful blisters), but lifted him into the air. Given his experience with heights for the day, he shouldn't have been too surprised, but he screamed his head off the whole way up.

And then landed on the cliff he'd been standing on only a moment before.

…Link kissed the ground.

0:0:0

After collecting various pots with unknown substances in them, the Deku Leaf suddenly seemed back to normal. Ignoring a loud, _'Oh! That's what those were for!'_ from his supposed guide, the young hero tested the wind with his finger and got out the Wind Waker. With a strange conductor's pattern, the wind blew in the direction it had to go.

And so, swallowing his fear, Link stepped off the cliff once more, gliding smoothly towards the island. He was only in the air for a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity, since the boy knew there was so much that could go wrong.

This time, though, the green-clad hero watched for his shadow on the ground before letting go of the leaf. When his shadow was (finally) close enough to the center for the boy, he descended smoothly, taking the shock of the drop in his knees. Link may not have been the sharpest pencil in the case, but he knew better than to do a roll when the cliff was only wide enough for him to lay down twice beside himself.

'_Hey, get some of those weird-looking containers. I have a feeling they'll be important,' _the voice said, and Link picked up the various pots. He'd taken about three when the disembodied voice told him it was enough. The green-clad hero thought it a bit odd that he knew so much about these when, just a moment ago, he seemed surprised to know that these even existed, but he didn't say anything of it.

Magical baton and leaf out once more, the Wind Waker changed the wind direction so that he wouldn't be blown off course. He waited with a cringe for the cyclone that, if timed correctly, would carry him safely up to the cliff.

…

After about three failed attempts, Link finally got it right, and landed safely on the adjoining ledge to the Forbidden woods. Gulping down his fear, he stepped inside.

0:0:0

The first few feet of the woods were pitch black, but once he got further in, instead of black, he saw only green. Green trees, green grass, and green… blobs.

Link recognized the blob-creatures as some of the ones he'd fought off for the Deku Tree, and immediately got his sword out. They'd never been anything more than a bit disgusting (a 'challenge' would be pushing it), but some still managed to slap him like the rubbery, wet noodles they were.

'_Watch your left side. There are three coming on you from there, and quite frankly, I don't think your hair could take anymore gel.'_

"You're hilarious," Link grunted, slicing one of the creatures in half (which really shouldn't have worked, since it was made of jell-o, which pretty much sticks back together when you wreck it, but if it works, it works). "Could you do a bit more instructing," he ducked one of their 'attacks', "and a little less joking?"

The voice sighed. _'I instructed you where they were, didn't I? One's behind you, by the way,'_ he said, a bit too late, because no sooner than he'd spoken than it head-butted the boy, momentarily sticking to the green hat.

"Oh. Gee. Thanks," Link rolled his eyes, and though his sword snagged his hat a little bit while he attacked the creature, it wasn't anything that a sewing machine couldn't fix. The last Green Chu exploded in a purple and black cloud of smoke, leaving behind something shiny.

"That's pretty…" the boy said, examining the glowing orb. No sooner than he'd touched it, however, the dark ball exploded, revealing many useful items. A red heart was the first thing he picked up (he didn't wonder for too long why he felt energized afterwards, or that strange _'Oh!' _exclamation from his guide), along with quite a few rupees. He was about to pick up a butterfly necklace when the disembodied voice stopped him.

'_Again with the gay thing. Do you realize how hard I try to keep people from thinking tights and tunics—NO THEY ARE NOT DRESSES—are feminine? Step away from the pendant, dude.'_ Link rolled his eyes and stashed the pretty necklace anyways, having a sudden intuition that it'd be useful later.

Suddenly, however, the young hero whirled around, his hair standing on end with a sensation of being watched. He knew it hadn't been the voice that upset his instinct—mainly because whoever the voice belonged to had been stalking him from day one—and turned his gaze to a flower.

A flower with eyes. …And tentacles.

Creepy much?

Tentatively, Link walked towards it. It didn't seem to be threatening… in fact, it didn't even seem territorial. It didn't attack him when he got closer, and the boy wondered briefly if he should even destroy it. Mind unmade, he walked around the corner to find a treasure chest.

It was guarded by about four different Green Chus, but it wasn't really a problem so long as he listened to his voice.

…Which seemed curiously quiet at the moment.

"Hi!" Link shouted to the sky, causing the Green Chus to wonder about the mental stability of their prey for a moment, "Remember me? The guy you're supposed to be helping?"

'_Yes, right.' _The voice appeared flustered, as if he'd been preoccupied with something. _'Um. You realize that you're surrounded by those gooey things, right?'_

The boy gritted his teeth. "No…" he said, voice dripping with sarcasm, "I just thought I'd disrupt whatever other important thing you were doing for no reason whatsoever. Could you help me out here for a minute?"

'_Right. …Um, spin attack, all around you.'_

"A what?" Link asked, incredulity creeping into his voice.

The stare that the young hero often felt bearing onto the back of his neck intensified. _'You mean to tell me that you don't know what a spin attack is?' _there was the impression of someone pinching the bridge of his nose. _'It's a wonder you've survived this far. By Farore's Courage, you need proper training,'_ he muttered.

"Yeah. Um. I'm okay with that, but you seem to have forgotten that I'm _surrounded_ right now." Link was almost shouting, which was both strange and unsettling, mainly because the boy talked so little to begin with.

'_Right. Well, you know the drill, anyways. One's behind you, one's in front, and one to each side. Just slash 'em a couple times. They don't really pose a threat. I doubt they could leave a bruise if they tried.'_

Now, Link knew this. He knew it pretty well. He was just a little upset that his guide, who was supposed to help him through everything, seemed to be too preoccupied with something else at the time.

To no one's surprise, the green-clad warrior came out victorious, but not without another few glares towards the sky.

000

The pot in the corner of the room was now filled with waste. Immortal though he may be, there were certain mortal needs that he had. If you eat and drink, well… it's gotta go somewhere, even in the Hero's Realm.

He glanced back up to the screen and rolled his eyes at the boy who was still glaring at him.

_Sometimes_, he thought, pulling up his pants, _It's almost like the kid thinks he needs me. _And he laughed at the thought, because he couldn't help but think of Navi.

000

After retrieving the item from the treasure chest (turning out to be nothing more than a dungeon map, which seemed to be written in Old Hylian, so it was entirely useless), Link was once more staring at the flower with the eye. He'd already tried to cut off the tentacles, but they always grew back. And the flower's weak spot (its eye) disappeared every time he got close enough to get rid of the vines.

He sighed and paced around for a minute, scratching his head and shaking the leaves that'd gotten caught in his hat off.

'_Here's a thought,' _his voice asked, no longer sounding preoccupied. _'How about you find something to throw at it?'_

Link, still partially angry at his guide, huffed. "As if that'd actually work." To prove his point, he walked towards a plant that held a giant nut.

He got closer and chucked the nut at the flower, and to his surprise, it vanished in a black and purple puff of smoke. Sheepishly, he glanced at the floor. Anywhere but the sky, really.

'_You're welcome,' _the voice said with a smirk.

The young hero flared his nostrils at that, and crossed his arms. "What were you doing there, anyways?"

The voice huffed. _'Since when do I tell you what I'm doing? Geez, kid.'_

Link frowned. "I still don't know your name. I'm tired of referring to you, in my head anyways, as 'The Voice'. It's actually kind of creepy. I don't care if it's a fake name or something. Just… anything is better than nothing, you know?"

Sighing, his guide seemed to relent. _'Fine. You can call me… um…'_ the voice paused. _'If you want, you can call me Navi.'_

The young hero, who had read all of the old legends (especially the night before his Coming of Age Celebration, when he spent half the night reading the _Legend of the Hero of Time_, hence the next morning's tiredness), grinned as big as he could manage.

"I don't think that's your real name, since everyone knows that _Navi'_s a fairy, and fairies are girls, but I think it's pretty cool." And just like that, the boy was contented.

He walked through the door, and he thought for sure he could hear the voice—'Navi'—breathe a sigh in relief.

Not to Link's surprise, the other side of the door was green. Completely… excepting for the odd Venus Fly Trap thing, and more of those flower launchers. …And some weird spiky tentacle things. Couldn't forget those.

The knowledge that he'd have to use more of the floral cannons was depressing, and made the young hero cringe.

His voice—Link corrected himself in his mind—Navi, seemed to sense this. _'It'll be fine, kid. You don't even have to jump in those yet, anyways. Just jump off the ledge there.'_

But when the young hero saw exactly how far the ledge was, he wondered if he should truly be taking advice from the myst—_Navi_, Link reminded himself.

'_Oh, come on. It's not even that far. Don't think, just do!' _

The green-clad hero forced himself not to make a snide remark about idiots who do things without thought.

((**A/N: It was a good thing that he stopped himself, though, mainly because it would've been along the lines of 'reckless masochist' and we all know how the Hero of Time reacts to THAT**.))

But he jumped anyways, and found himself surprisingly okay, mainly because he'd turned it into a somersault at the very last second.

'_Boko Babas. You might want to get your sword out… wouldn't want one of them to eat you or anything,' _the—'Navi' said, and Link shuddered at the imagery. Yes, he'd be striving to avoid that fate… but did he really have to kill the things? They were almost sentient, with the way they moved…

And, in that ability for motion, one snapped at the young hero, and he barely managed to jump back in time. He decided that he'd be okay with killing a few, so long as he wasn't eaten alive first.

With his sword reflecting the green all around him, the green from the 'blood' of the plants went almost unnoticed.

Still, after they'd all fallen (and he'd picked up their creepy looking seeds), he was baffled as for what to do next. There was a small hut-looking thing with a treasure chest in the middle. Link could guess that there'd be a few Green Chus guarding it, but the real problem was the creepy flower with the eye and the tentacles. He didn't see anything big enough to throw at it, and he didn't know any other way to destroy it.

Sighing in frustration (and cursing a bit under his breath, which his pseudo-fairy scolded him for), he sat down on one of the mossy rocks.

'_Alright, kid. I'd say it was time for a break, anyways.' _Link nodded, and after a minute or two's rest, his stomach growled.

'_When was the last time you ate? Like, real food, and not a potion or a sip of water?' _Navi asked with an incredulous tone creeping into his speech.

"I'm fine," the boy protested, crossing his arms. "It's not like you can eat anything here, anyways."

'_Can't eat anything here? Are you daft? This is a forest, ain't it? People used to survive solely on what the trees and the grass would bring. You seriously didn't know this?' _

Link, who was staring at … well, an empty space, but imagining that it was someone else's face anyways, looked so confused that his guide could only sigh and further explain.

'_Okay. The seeds you just collected? You can eat them. They're a bit spiky, but have about the same texture as a pineapple—complete with the acidic tendencies.' _

The boy blinked. "What's a pineapple?"

'_For the love of Nayru! You live on a tropical island and you don't know what a pineapple is? No, scratch that—your island has a forest on it, too! Haven't you ever been there before?'_

The green-clothed hero took off his floppy hat and scratched his head. "Not really. There were a lot of nasty rumors about it, and quite frankly…" he shrugged. "No one really had a reason to go into it, especially after the bridge broke and the fairy hole got covered with a rock."

'Navi' was quiet for a minute. Then he cleared his throat. _'I see. So you were the first to go back into it in… years?'_

The boy reddened a bit. He'd never been someone to enjoy flattery… "Try decades. Orca seemed to be the only one who even remembered the basic layout, so it's lucky that he told me where to go when he trained me."

The pseudo-fairy laughed. _'About that training… whenever you're ready, we'll practice a bit.'_

"Right here? In the middle of the forest?" the green-clad warrior asked, eyes widening.

'_Well, yeah. Don't most people learn in a forest?' _his voice asked, seemingly puzzled. Then, he seemed to remember something. _'But we do NOT start until you have something to eat! You'll make yourself sick, and we just barely got here!' _

The boy flared his nostrils a bit at that, but figured it was no use trying to argue with the 'fairy'. Besides, Navi might try to get revenge by shouting random, unimportant things every three seconds, and Link didn't think he could deal with that easily. (The very thought of the voice shouting, '_Hey! Link! Hey, Link, listen!_' every three seconds was terrifying.)

So, he got to his feet and, with a sigh, listened to the pseudo-fairy ramble on about the various fruits and vegetables that were native to these woods.

…Granted, a fleeting thought of, 'Wait, how does this guy know so much about this forest?' occurred to him more than once, but the boy was determined not to ask, mainly because he was too busy eating his fill. He hadn't even realized he was hungry until he'd started eating, but he was glad that 'Navi' had said something. A few minutes later, Link had finished replenishing his (completely depleted) energy reserves, and with a contented smile, he sat down on the grass.

'_Toldja. The purplish-red berries are the best ones, if I do say so myself. And they're not bad with Boko Baba seeds, I'll tell you that right now.' _And the boy nodded, his hand resting gently on his sword-hilt. Although the forest all around him seemed downright creepy at times (he hadn't forgotten the weird, spiky, tentacle things, and even then, they wiggled above him), he felt almost relaxed.

In truth, he didn't like talking much in general, but he felt almost at ease speaking out loud to the pseudo-fairy. Granted, the one who called himself 'Navi' did a lot more talking than Link, but it was still nice to be able to feel like he could get a word in edgewise.

He'd been around a lot of talkative women in his young life, and if there was one thing they'd taught him, it was that if you didn't say the right thing to a girl, they took it personally.

A few minutes passed, and the boy almost dozed off. The disembodied voice, however, startled him awake. _'Resting or taking a break here is one thing,' _he said as Link roused himself, _'But I don't think it'd be a good idea to sleep here.'_

The young hero nodded his agreement and started walking towards the treasure chest with the hopes that the wannabe fairy had already forgotten about the sword-lessons. It wasn't that learning how to fight better wasn't fun…

"So… ahem, what do you want me to do here?"

'_Ah, ah, ah. Not so fast, kid. You're not getting out of sword-training that easy.' _The pseudo-fairy chided him, and the boy sighed.

…It was just that learning when you're tired and hot and sweaty (with no thanks to the woolen undershirt that your grandma insisted that you wear) and had just eaten.

But he figured that he had to fight the Green Chus still in hiding on the inside of the hut anyways, so he nodded up to the sky and kept walking.

'_Alright. Sword out and in your left hand, feet apart, shield strapped to your left arm, and make sure you're prepared.' _Link did his best to follow the instructions, but he seemed a bit more bored than battle-ready. _'Um. Open your eyes all the way, please?' _

Instead, the boy just rolled them. He was fighting against green blobs. What was the worst that could happen?

…

Fifteen minutes later, the boy was still cleaning the green gel out of his hair.

Really, the fight hadn't gone too badly. He'd done what he usually did, but for the last one, his guide instructed him to spin around really fast with his sword pointing really fast.

I think you see where, exactly, things went wrong.

Link did as instructed, but he'd never done too well with spinning around really fast—part of the reason for his instinctual aversion to the cyclones—and lost his balance, right as the Chu was leaping to tackle his torso. Instead of hitting him in the stomach with all the intensity of a wet noodle, the green blob ended up getting squashed against the boy's hair, and the force of impact knocked the green hat from his head.

'…_Okay. Um. We'll try that again later…' _the voice was saying, and Link guessed it was about the closest he'd get to an apology. _'But as for now, let's just try burning down that flower, eh?'_

"What?" the boy blinked, tilting his head to the side.

'_You didn't notice the fire? There's usually one for situations like this… But anyways, try to find something to use as a match. Like… like a deku stick or something.'_

"Again…what?" the young hero asked, eyebrows scrunching together in suspicion.

'_Just… peh. Okay, you see all around you? Those are trees. Highly combustible. Just break off a branch and hold it over the flame, will ya? …And for the love of Farore's bloody pearl, be careful,' _the pseudo-fairy ordered, irritation audible in his voice.

"Alright, alright, no need to get pushy. Sheesh," Link pacified the so-called 'fairy' and grabbed what looked to him like a broken off branch. Unfortunately, it was right next to a bush with very sharp thorns, and they tore holes in his shirt and cut him in a few different places on his arm.

'_I'd say, 'I told you so,' but I don't think you'd appreciate it.' _

The Outsetter ignored the smirk that seemed to appear alongside the comment, and continued onwards with the stick. He held it tentatively in front of him, and carefully lowered it to the flame.

Surprisingly, nothing went wrong. There were no sneak attacks by green blobs or random Venus Fly Traps trying to hurt him, and no spiky branches. He simply lit the stick on fire and used the branch to light the flower.

'_Based off of your luck,' _the boy's guide said with what could only be considered a smirk, _'I was expecting you to light yourself on fire or something. You'd think that there's someone in charge or fate or something that just enjoys making your life miserable.' _

"Thanks for the positivity," Link replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I'll make sure to remember all the love and care and support you gave me during this quest."

The boy walked forward, now slightly paranoid about the whole 'fate hates him' thing, and gingerly opened the chest.

…Inside was, no, not a small key, not a big key, not a new item—but a Knight's Crest!

Needless to say, Link felt a bit slighted, and very short-changed. The disembodied voice seemed to agree.

…But more colorfully.

"Now, now. You were getting onto _me_ for cursing, remember?" the boy reminded him with a sly grin.

'_Just for that, I say it's time we move on. You know what that means, right?'_

Link's face immediately fell. In under a second, he changed from smug to worried to terrified.

'_Yes, indeed. To the flower pods we go!' _and the young Outsetter got the sudden impression of being the pack horse of the Hero of Time. Always dead-tired, and forced to do crazy stunts just to please a partially insane master.

Yet somehow, with his guide leading him through the floral cannons, it wasn't as bad that time around. In fact, the boy almost smiled as he was launched from platform to platform, sometimes even having to use the magical leaf to get him to the ones further away.

But, of course, once he landed on the final ledge, he found that it was guarded by a few Green Chus.

He decided to kill them both as fast as he could, in honor of his hair, still ruined by their brother's goo.

XXX

**Hello! Welcome back to Guiding the Wind Waker. I'm your host, SamuraiSal1, and today we learned all about the dangers of flower-cannons, the too-easy-to-impress Koroks, and that even the dudes in the Heroes Realm need to go sometimes, too. Thankfully people remembered to put a pot inside the chamber. xD **

**Anyways. Hope you enjoyed the latest installment, and please review? **

**ALSO: Remind me never to attempt writing more than half of this in one night. I wrote 4033 words last night while listening to way too many Disney songs. So if Link seems a bit gay-er than usual, well, blame A Goofy Movie's "Nobody Else But You". …It would also explain the on-and-off sappiness between the two Links.**


	5. Koriki Forest

**Alright! I'll be trying to finish one of these every week, so bear with me. **

…Unfortunately, he missed the Green Chu a few times, and ended up hitting the bomb next to it. Thankfully, though, aside from a slightly blackened tunic and his eyebrows being a little darker than they'd been a minute ago, he was fine.

He smiled when he realized that the bomb had even blown up the Chus!

…It quickly turned into a frown, though, when he tentatively ran his hands through his hair… and found more goo in it than when he'd last checked.

It was about this time that his pseudo-fairy burst into uncontrollable laughter, which echoed loudly (at least, in the boy's imagination) across the forest.

"Oh, come on! You've been a guide to 'All the Links,' right?" Link shouted, and his guide laughed harder, for some reason. "You must've seen worse than this!"

The loud laughter slowly died down into a light chuckle. _'Alright, alright. You got me. The, eh, Hero of Time once drank an entire carton of rotten milk—he was sick for days! You should consider yourself lucky, you know,'_

The Wind Waker stared at nothing for a moment or two, then snickered.

"I always got the impression that the Hero of Time was, like, some great god or something. What was he really like, since you, you know…?"

Link trailed off, unsure as to why his guide had gone completely silent.

'…_He… wasn't as great as you might think, you know,' _'Navi' said after a moment. _'He was just a kid, for a big portion of his adventure. And for the most part, …he was pretty scared.' _

The boy considered that a moment, then he grinned. "Yeah, but that's part of what makes it so amazing. That a little kid, raised among ageless children, would turn out to be such an amazing warrior? It's incredible! When my grandma told me the legend for the first time, I told her that I wanted to be just like him."

Link suddenly stopped talking. He glanced down at his green tunic, then took off his hat and stared at it.

"…Huh," he said with a pleasantly confused smile. "I never really thought that I'd actually get to have a dream come true."

His voice stayed quiet.

The Outsetter then shrugged and plopped his hat back on. It was time to move on anyway, wasn't it?

OOO

The Hero of Time blinked at the screen, trying desperately hard to take in what the kid had just said. Link had never been so excited to go on his adventure, after all.

And it was funny. Were all Links that uncomfortable with fame?

The Ocarina of Time player coughed once and wiped moisture out of his eyes that he hadn't even known had collected there.

OOO

The Wind Waker picked up the fruit from the bomb-plant that had caused him so much trouble already (wondering, as always, how a bomb could even be grown in the first place) and chucked it at the wall with the eye-flower.

It landed close enough to detonate the flower, and what was behind the door?

…Link had already guessed, and with a sigh, walked through the entrance to find even more forest. It was a little different from what he expected, though. Not twenty feet from the door he'd just walked through, the ground he was standing on made a sudden cliff.

To his left, there was a very, very odd looking plant, and to his right were more trees. In front of him, beyond the ledge, he couldn't make out because of a rather dense fog.

His guide suddenly overcame his silence.

'_Alright, kid. You have anything that could be used as a fan?' _and the Outsetter frantically searched his pockets to find nothing other than the Deku Leaf. _'Ah, well. It's magical anyways. It'll probably work.' _The pseudo-fairy paused for a moment, coughing. _'All you need to do is stand to the far left side, and … okay, you know how to shake out a blanket? Do that with the Deku Leaf in the direction of the weird-looking plant over there.'_

No sooner than Link had finished following his guide's instructions did the bright green bush spin. The boy stared at it, wondering if the clean, fresh air of the forest had finally started to make him hallucinate. He rubbed his eyes for a moment, but the image was still there.

'_Um, kid? Turn around.'_

There, waiting for him, was a strange contraption, made of rotting wood and seemingly held together with vines. The Hero of Winds took one look at it and stomped his foot.

"Oh, no. There is absolutely, positively, no way I'm riding that thing. It's absolutely begging to snap halfway through the ride, and I'll end up falling however far away the ground is, and—"

The voice cut him off.

'_Have I ever let you down before?'_

Link sighed and shook his head. He knew he should trust 'Navi,' but… it was just pretty hard sometimes. You know, all the times that he was asking him to do something that defied all logic, or all the things that were about, "Don't think! Just do it!".

'_No? Then I'm glad we're clear. The thingy will hold you, and even if it won't, you'll have your Deku Leaf ready.' _

The Hero of Winds gulped and stepped onto the strange contraption, ignoring the immediate creaks resounding from it.

'_Now use your Deku Leaf to blow some to the other side… more to the right, though.'_

And the sideways ledge moved slowly, painfully slowly towards the other edge. The boy's knees were shaking, and Link was currently wringing out his hat as if it had water. …Although, with how much sweat the kid had already put into it, one couldn't be surprised if it actually did have quite a bit of liquid.

It didn't help that his voice chimed in, _'Although, I wouldn't put too much faith in the vines. This thing looks as if it hasn't been used in several decades. It's probably best if you keep your grappling hook handy, yeah?' _at the halfway point, either.

After finally reaching the other side, Link dropped to his knees and immediately kissed the ground. He was fairly certain that his pseudo-fairy was rolling his eyes, but at the moment, the green-clad hero couldn't have cared less.

'_Um… not to break up this… er, touching reunion, but do you think we could get going?' _'Navi' asked impatiently. Link ignored him and sprawled out on the grass, sticking his fingers deep into the dirt, as if he was giving the earth a hug.

"Oh, Earthy—Promise me no one will ever keep us apart again…" the Outsetter did his best impression of a female, which was surprisingly good (to 'Navi's' eternal discomfort). Then, with a sly look to the horizon, added, "Especially not Kamikaze instructors with nothing better to do than try to kill poor, innocent little boys."

'_I resent that.'_

"I know."

And like that, the Hero of Winds was ready to move on.

Through the next door, Link was surprised to see that there was an actual path that cut across the entire room. His eyes were wide and he had to try very hard to resist the urge to jump in the pile of leaves to his right.

"THERE'S AN ACTUAL TRAIL!"

…

The Outsetter was very quick to learn that there are some things that you just aren't supposed to shout in the middle of a forest (while surrounded by predators, nonetheless).

Almost immediately, a black creature came at him, using a strange 'cap' as a helicopter. It wasn't long before the animal/vegetable/plant/alien was directly above him, and dive-bombed.

Thankfully, though, Link was one to trust his instincts.

…And that annoying voice inside of his head that told him to roll out of the way. Couldn't take credit away from the guy who could see everything above and around the boy, after all.

"How do I beat it?" the green-clad child asked, still running away from the black thing. It didn't take long until four more joined the chase, and by now, Link had ran a full circle around the room, getting any number of thorns in his boots in the process. And even though he was fast, he wasn't fast enough to block all of their attacks.

'_Shoot… you don't have the boomerang yet, do you?' _'Navi' asked, and there was the sound of someone's hand hitting their forehead.

"Do you think that if I actually had it, I wouldn't be using it?" the boy shouted, barely avoiding a potentially trip-able log. He was still slowed down by it, though, and two of them managed to hit him at once.

'_Well…' _the voice said with what could only be an eyeroll.

"JUST SHUT UP AND HELP ME!" Link shouted, slashing his sword around like a wild person.

'_Heh. Alright, alright. Get out your Deku Leaf…'_

The Outsetter almost (almost!) stopped in shock. There was something too useful about the Deku Leaf here. It was almost as if someone far away had planned this for him.

'_And do the same thing you did to the spinner thingies to those guys.' _'Navi' finished, and although the boy had no clue how that'd help, he figured that it was better than running around forever.

It was a hard thing, Link mused, to get out supplies while running for your life. Granted, these things were only head-butting (well, trying to, at least) him, but it was like getting hit with a pillow weighted down with sand and rocks. But even if they had been made of cotton candy, it was never fun to be hit.

After a minute or two more of rummaging around in his seemingly endless pockets, the Outsetter finally found the leaf. He 'shook it out' in the direction of the closest creature, and to his surprise, it dropped to the ground.

He was so surprised that he almost was too slow to attack it with his sword. …Almost.

"And this is for making me run around for fifteen minutes!" he slashed at the first, and then knocked down the next. "And this is for hitting me in the head!"

Two minutes later, he ran out of useless angry comments, and the pseudo-fairy rolled his eyes.

"…And this… um, this is for being ugly!" He shouted, and the last one finally exploded into a cloud of smoke.

'_Actually, I think they're kind of cute. You know, if they weren't trying to kill you and all.' _'Navi' said, and Link frowned his incredulous frown.

"They attacked me!"

'_Yes, I can see that. Those bruises don't look like much fun, either. …But you still got the winning end of the fight, so you really didn't need to, you know, insult them and all,'_ the self-dubbed fairy offered with a slight cough.

Link was quiet for a minute. He raised an eyebrow and glanced up to the leaves that blocked the majority of the sunlight. Awkwardly scratching the back of his head, the boy decided that he had nothing to say to that.

'_Um… I'll explain later. …Let's… let's just keep moving.'_

The Outsetter obliged, and walked forward, this time a bit more on guard for other predators.

For once, he got twenty feet without getting hit. He defeated a few Boko-Babas without even getting a scratch (but definitely picking up the delicious seeds for future snacking), and used two flower-cannons to get launched onto the next levels.

He glanced at the doorway in front of him, and saw that, as usual, a tentacle-flower was guarding it. The nut he needed to destroy it with was, of course, on the other side of a very long cliff.

And what was the mode of transportation to get where he needed to go?

Another illegitimate child of a bridge and an elevator, of course!

Link almost groaned as he realized that he'd have to ride in another one of those, but this one looked a little newer, at least. And the vines seemed stable enough…

He put one foot onto the transport device and shrieked as it creaked loudly then moved away from him.

'_For the love of Nayru, kid! You have to go on it all the way! This one's newer than the last one, and you're still worried about it crashing? Just get on the blasted crate!' _the disembodied voice was shouting, and the boy had to swallow his fear. His guide was giving him a headache, after all, and since water wasn't really an option at that moment, he decided that peace and quiet would have to do.

Link took a deep breath and hopped onto the bridge wannabe, blasting wind to the other side as quickly as he could. He didn't like those things _at all._

It was increasingly difficult to carry the nut back across the sideways elevator, but somehow he managed before the deku nut dissolved. It was still a close call, though.

Once the flower vanished into a cloud of black and purple smoke, though, Link hurried through the door.

And what did he find? Why, more forest, of course!

This room was a little different, though. Instead of the trees acting as walls, this actually seemed to be more of a cave. So, he tentatively stepped forward…

Only to have spiky tentacles pop out of the ground and knock him—hard—against the wall.

It didn't do much damage, though. At the very most, the boy decided that he only had a medium-deep scratch across his chest, but it wasn't anything that a little bit of magical water and some needle-and-thread for his clothes wouldn't fix.

Still, the pseudo-fairy seemed on distraught when he shouted, _'Are you all right?'_

In fact, Link decided that his guide was on the verge of panic. Never one to enjoy worrying people, he quickly brushed himself off and stood back up.

"What? Took me by surprise, that's…" the Outsetter suppressed the urge to wince from the bruising as he got back to his full height. "…That's all. I'm fine."

'_Kid, you can't fool me with the 'Fine' excuse. I've used it one too many times, myself, and believe me, if that felt anything like it felt every time I got slammed into a wall…' _'Navi' suddenly stopped talking, and the Wind Waker raised his eyebrow.

"You got slammed into walls?" This, the young hero thought, was new.

'_Uhm… just… just forget I said that, okay? And if you don't want to get hit by those vines again, I suggest getting out your Deku Leaf and blowing that nut across to the other side.' _

Link wasn't quite ready to drop the subject, but suspected that he wouldn't be getting anything out of his guide. So, with a frown, he used 'his element' to push the nut to the other side. He was about to wak forward again, but decided he'd had enough pain for the day.

"And I avoid the spiky things… how?" he asked, eyebrow still raised.

'_I… Don't know these guys' pattern… but sticking to the walls never hurt. If nothing else, you won't get slammed into them as hard, yanno?'_

The boy sighed then nodded. He wouldn't give his guide the satisfaction of seeing him limp, so he walked cautiously towards the left wall. Somehow, the thick vines managed to not sense him, and he made it to the other side without further injury.

That's not to say he was feeling any less bruised from his impact with the wall, though. Deep breaths were rather uncomfortable on his lungs, and unfortunately, it was noticeable.

'_I'm not kidding. Take it easy, will you? You're doing yourself absolutely no good if you manage to find the… Kori—…the 'Korok'… if you can't protect her… him…'_

Link wasn't quite sure why his guide was tripping over his tongue so much. He could guess why he got 'Korok' wrong, after all, he was a 'guide to the previous Links'… but why had he called Makar a girl? After a moment of leaning against the wall, he decided that it didn't matter at the moment. Besides—it was probably just the headache talking.

The Outsetter threw the nut at the flower with the eye, and it exploded, letting the green vines go limp and drop away from the door. Link walked as confidently as he could through the door, only to find a very strange room on the other side.

There were an awful lot of ledges in this room, and Link wasn't quite sure he liked them. There was also the small fact that, five minutes of staring at all of the strange forest additions later, the leaves were letting through a lot less sunlight. The young hero could only assume that night was falling.

With a groan, he sat down at the edge of the small cliff and tried to determine how much longer this adventure would take if he was stumbling through the forest half-blinded by the dark.

'_Hey, relax, kid. I can see in the dark. You'll make it out of here, no problem.' _The pseudo-fairy said as encouragingly as he could, but Link found it hard to share the enthusiasm. There was only so much time an island boy could spend in a hot, humid forest without good food or rest.

"Yeah? You're not the one having to fight everything, you know…" and the young hero leaned forward, trying not to imagine how much it'd hurt if he fell from this height.

'…_I'm going to go see if I can find water. Have fun at your pity party,' _the voice muttered, and Link immediately felt guilty. 'Navi' was only trying to help, after all.

Sometimes, he wondered if being a hero was really worth it in the end… but then, he remembered his sister's face as she was being taken, and decided that, even if it wasn't worth it… he'd do it anyways.

A moment of quiet passed over the hero, and before he realized it, he was slumping against the wall with his head against his chest, eyes closed and snoring. Somehow, he got lucky, and no predators crept upon him while he dozed, but when 'Navi' got back to him, he really wasn't sure what to say.

000

Well, the Hero of Time could hardly blame the boy for falling asleep. This new task seemed impossible, and he was tired anyways. But the kid had to have known that sleeping here was dangerous…!

But he also had to remind himself that he hadn't been too different, himself. Sometimes, when Lon-Lon Ran was too far away to ride to, Link had to crash out in the open, too, using (the real) Navi to wake him up if there was danger. Those nights were always restless, but better than nothing.

Looking back, the deceased hero had a feeling that it probably wasn't the smartest thing for him to have done, especially so often, but Navi could at least reach out and pull his on his ears if he needed to wake up. Link wasn't even sure if he'd be able to wake the boy up from inside of his head. Before, the kid had only been half-asleep, but now…?

Quiet snores escaped the young warrior, and the Hero of Time tried very, very hard not to give into his 'Protecting People All the Time' disorder.

Unfortunately, the very nature of the disorder forced him to feel the undying need to help people, so Link found himself unable to even budge the young hero who already (very much) needed sleep. But it just so happened that The Hero of Time had a safe-place for the boy to stay for the night. It was a long walk, but it was a safe path, so long as he remembered it correctly… but for the moment, there wasn't any danger, and he figured that the kid deserved a moment's rest, even if it wouldn't last.

However, when yet another of the black, helicopter-esque creatures flew towards the boy, the Hero of Time decided that it was time to take action.

"HEY!" he shouted at the screen, worry and annoyance and too little sleep creeping into his tone, "Listen! Wake up!"

A moment passed, and the boy finally sat up and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"It's time to get up, kid! Come on!"

About this time, Link was suddenly compelled to say something about how the Great Deku Tree needed to see him, but he suppressed the urge.

000

The Wind Waker immediately decided that waking up on the edge of a cliff with a monster advancing was not the way to start the day. …Evening. Whatever.

And having to spend a minute and a half digging around in his pockets (in the dark) for his Deku Leaf wasn't the most enjoyable thing, either, when a flying creature was getting closer and closer. The good thing, though, was that when he finally managed to hit it, it stopped spinning its propellers and dropped down as far as the cliff went.

'_Alright, kid. I hate to say it, but we're going to have to find somewhere to stay for the night. …And some water, too. Speaking of which, I found both when looking around earlier.' _'Navi' was saying, and Link immediately looked more alert. _'Jump onto the ledge to your right, and use your leaf-parachute thing to float directly down.'_

It was all the kid could do to keep his eyes open, but he managed to float down to the bottom unharmed.

'_Okay. Now, you'll be walking through that big, ominous doorway on the other side of this cavern. It should be kind of like a river… yeah. That's it.'_

Quite frankly, if the walk through the water did anything, it woke the boy up, but he needed water anyways. Link used his empty bottle to take out a few sips of the water. It wasn't healing water, but it was water nonetheless, and it felt good on his dry throat.

'_You wanna keep walking through the water?' _the disembodied voice asked when the boy was done drinking (and refilling the bottle for future use), _'or do you want to take that weird-looking lily-pad as a boat?'_

Link just shrugged. It didn't really matter to him, anyways, and he was too tired to protest.

'_Eh, alright, then. Walking it is…'_

And a walk it was. A long one, that is—long and uneventful, which was probably good for both boy and guide. When the Wind Waker finally entered the clearing, filled with long-since abandoned houses, he stared. It was certainly how the legends described it…

"You mean… this is…?"

'_Yup. This is Kokiri Village. I have this strange feeling that the Hero of Time wouldn't exactly mind lending his hut to a fellow hero, eh?' _'Navi' said, and Link got the distinct feeling that his guide was trying to create a time paradox. He was tired, yes, but this was where the Hero of Time grew up!

"You're sure? I mean, I would seriously hate to intrude like this." The boy bit his lip for a moment, glancing around towards his surroundings. Everything just… looked so sad—sad and rundown. And he hesitated to ask, but he really needed to know…

The pseudo-fairy seemed to pick up on his hesitation. _'Yeah? Spit it out, kid.'_

"…And… and are you absolutely sure this place isn't, you know, haunted?"

Everything was silent between the two for a moment—nothing but the wind in the trees and the grass.

000

The boy's guide was at a loss for words for a while. Really, he didn't know what to say without giving away anything.

He rolled his eyes at the thought. There was little else he could give away at this point, he guessed. But still. The Hero of Time had never liked being obvious, and, well…

The problem was that the place _was_ haunted. By him, to be specific. And by the original Koriki, because he knew that they'd never have let themselves get to be so… so shy and afraid. They'd been fearless—it was the only reason he knew courage from the beginning.

But the haunting would only affect him. Or, it may affect the boy, he realized, but not nearly as much as himself. Because, the truth was that being there… hurt. Seeing so many memories come to ruin was… depressing, to say the least. Depressing and painful and it felt like the world was spinning out of control.

The sad part was that it already had. It had spun out of his control, and Hyrule was now underwater.

Because of him.

Because the Hero of Time, in the end, failed. That's why this twelve year old boy, the 'Hero of Winds' had to fight Ganondorf—because of Link's own failures.

He supposed that was why he was helping the boy now—why he was guiding him. And what kind of guide would he be if he pushed the young hero too hard, or never let him rest? What kind of person, in general, would he be if he led the child to the same ruin as he was put to?

So the Hero of Time decided that he would face his demons head-on, in the place of both his best dreams and worst nightmares.

He sighed, and realized that the boy was still waiting on an answer.

"It is haunted, kid…"

000

'…_But not in the way you'd think.'_

Link tilted his head in confusion, but his guide sounded so distraught right then, that the Wind Waker honestly didn't think he had it in him to press further. It wouldn't do to upset the 'fairy' that had done so much for him already.

"…Well, all right, then…" Link cleared his throat. "You… you haven't hurt me yet, so… I figure it's best to… er, trust you. I mean, if that's all right with you."

He got no reply.

Scratching the back of his head awkwardly, he walked towards the house that he assumed was the Hero of Time's—although, it was hard to match with the Legend's description, because, after so many years of abandonment, it was rather run down.

Still, it was one of the only ones with a ladder, so Link climbed it tentatively, worrying privately about any number of things—a splintering ladder being only one.

But as he opened the front door to the hut, it was as if the room had been protected by magic. The bed was still made, and it seemed as if it were in perpetual twilight. The sunlight crept in with soft rays that fell on the shaggy rug, and the Wind Waker likewise crawled into the bed. He decided then and there that it'd be the absolute most perfect place to sleep.

And sleep he did, for it was mid-morning when he next opened his eyes.

000

The Hero of Time didn't know if this was exactly 'Guardian Protocol,' but playing Saria's Song on his Ocarina when the boy woke up didn't seem too bad of an idea.

**Alright, so it's a bit short. But quite frankly, I'm happy to upload this a little bit early, and you should be, too. So, er, enjoy this little tidbit, because I'm tired of writing and this seemed as good a place as any to cut off.**


	6. Boomerangs and Boss Keys

**Just to clarify: 000 and OOO (sometimes I forget which one I'm using; sue me) mean that the scene is changing from Wind Waker Link to Ocarina of Time Link, or vice-versa. **

**And**

…

**Means a passing of time. As in, nothing happens, and I don't want to bore you guys with useless details. There IS such a thing as too much detail, yanno.**

The sun had barely risen, but that didn't stop the Hero of Time from being just slightly perturbed that his charge was being totally and completely obstinate.

Yes, Link understood that the boy had done a lot yesterday, but he'd been asleep for nearly ten hours! He'd taken a nap at sunset, and then took an hour or two's walk to Kokiri Forest, and then slept there until sunrise. So, quite frankly, he didn't understand why the young hero was taking so long to get himself up.

Or even open his eyes, for that matter.

'_Hey! Hey, wake up! HEY!'_

Not even a flinch.

The Hero of Time had tried everything short of crashing the ceremonial cymbals together—not excluding tap dancing!—but nothing had worked.

If he'd been an actual fairy, instead of a disembodied voice, he might've been able to get some kind of breakfast for the boy to rouse him easier, or Link might even have been able to pull on the boy's ears. But sadly, he was little more than a loud voice in the hero's head that told him where to go and what to do.

It was then that he noticed the unnatural heat emanating from the boy's forehead… And the Hero of Time decided that it was times like these that he really, really hated his job.

000

Meanwhile, in the Hero of Time's warm, cozy, magically protected bed, the green-clad warrior was having a very, very strange dream.

…

"_You see, I've been trying to tell you this for a while, Link," a mysteriously dressed boy was saying, and for some reason, the young hero blushed. The moment was heated on unnamed emotions, and the heat seemed to be spreading to Link's forehead. _

_Suddenly, he was sweating, and he almost felt like he was drowning in it. _

_But fire burst from both sides of him, and he looked into the boy's eyes, and they seemed to be the source of the fire. The boy looked as if he was about to say something profound, and Link didn't know why, but he felt like he had to draw his sword._

_He did so, and his blade didn't reflect the heat of the fire. Instead, it showed a gust of wind. It seemed to almost blow the boy away, but something held both of them there. _

_A moment passed like that, and suddenly, the strange boy stepped forward and drew his own sword, clashing it loudly against Link's own._

"_I'm actually a girl."_

…

Link jerked away with a yell and all the power of the Triforce of Courage at his command.

'_Nice to see that you finally woke up, kid,' _the pseudo-fairy said the moment that the hero's eyes opened. _'Not sure if you noticed this, but you're really hot right now.'_

A silence echoed across the small hut. Link blinked.

'Navi' rephrased very, very quickly: _'…Farore, that sounded weird. I meant that you kind of look like you have a fever and that you should have some water or something.' _

The young hero scratched his head a moment, then nodded and reached for his water.

'_I also recommend kicking off those blankets. They really aren't helping you.'_

Link narrowed his eyes, and instead of removing any of the blankets, he just pulled them closer. "I'm cold, though," he said with a frown.

'_And I get that. But they're doing more harm than good.' _

"No… they feel like they're doing a lot more good than harm. They're the Hero of Time's blankets. It'd, be, like, a paradox or something if they hurt me." The young hero was obstinate, and his guide sighed.

000

…Wow.

Just… wow.

The Hero of Time face-palmed, then did it again. And again. And again. …And again, just because the situation was ridiculous.

The kid had literally mentioned a paradox. And really, wasn't the entire situation some kind of time paradox? Either that, or someone's idea of a sick joke.

But right now, Link has having a hard time not banging his head against the wall in frustration. He wanted to point out the irony in the situation, but he had a feeling that his charge wouldn't really appreciate being guided by a dead person. He wasn't going to ask, though, mainly because it'd lead to some very odd questions.

And, of course, being a hero for too many years gave outright lying a bad taste on his tongue.

000

'_Kid? Trust me. This ain't a temple, so stop treating it like one. And it isn't a shrine, either, so stop worshipping it. This was just a Regular Joe's house. Link didn't even really use this place after he became the Hero of Time, so you don't have to respect it any more than you'd respect a friend's house. And being a Regular Joe's house, yes, the blankets can still hurt you. Not directly or anything—they aren't made of freakin' thorns, but they're still blankets, and way too many blankets to be using in the middle of summer.' _

The boy blinked. He'd never heard his guide say that many words in a row, so it took a moment to process all he'd said. But after a moment, Link sighed and kicked off the heavy quilts. He was startled to find that he was almost soaking wet, and that mixing with the morning air chilled him to the bone.

The young hero shivered uncontrollable for a moment, then grabbed the top blanket.

…He was a bit shocked to find that the one under it was pink.

He managed to stop his chattering teeth for long enough to utter a single syllable. "…Um…?"

For some reason, that managed to fluster his guide.

'_What do you mean, 'um?'… this was the Hero of Time's baby blanket!' _

Link coughed a few times and managed to bite down the remark of 'MmHmm. Did they pick it out before his gender was determined?' that was just aching to slip out.

"…Nevermind. Let's just get going. I need to find some breakfast anyways."

His guide seemed a little too happy to be done with that situation, but advised the boy to keep the blanket in his spoils bag, anyways. _'You may need it eventually, especially if there's an island here that's, like, cold or something.' _

Link shrugged and brought it with him. He didn't really see the point, but he figured it didn't hurt. And it wasn't like he didn't have a post-bag with nothing in it.

The Hero of Winds didn't really know which way he was supposed to go to leave the forest, so he was glad that his guide seemed to know where they were going. And after managing to avoid every single nasty creature from there to his next destination, Link understood that his pseudo-fairy's uncanny directional ability was definitely a good thing.

By the time they got to the stream closest to his destination, the boy's bottle of water was completely empty and he decided to refill it. He bent over to refill it, when suddenly, out of nowhere, one of the helicopter-like black creatures attacked him.

Link landed face-first in the stream, irritation already clouding his previously-cheerful morning.

It took a moment to find his Deku Leaf (and he nearly cut it on his sword in the process), but once he did, the creature was as good as vapor.

And to vapor did it turn—black and purple smoke, that is.

The green-clad hero admired his work for a moment, and declared his first challenge of the day, 'defeated.' His guide just rolled his eyes and told him to finish refilling his water.

A little bit further into the forest, and everything started to look familiar to the Outsetter. …Well, as familiar as a forest could be to him.

Granted, he very quickly realized that he had to go through several of the rooms again, but he found that they were far more manageable in the light of the day with a decent breakfast in him and a good-night's rest.

It wasn't long before he was in the big, airy room that he'd fallen asleep in before going to the Hero of Time's hut, and found that he was back on track. Glancing up to the sky, the young hero realized that it wasn't even midday yet. He smiled and got out his grappling hook, finally realizing that there was a branch high enough to swing him onto the next platform.

'_Hey! Would you look at that? Finding something before me, eh?' _the pseudo-fairy asked with a chuckle. Granted, Link highly doubted that his guide hadn't found it earlier than that, but he appreciated the sentiment.

From there, the forest appeared to be a blur. He'd be high up one moment, then dropping down a giant hole the next—or standing in one place for one second, then finding that he was acting as a chew-toy for a Venus Fly Trap the next.

'_Very nice, kid,' _his guide said with a laugh. Link didn't appreciate it quite as much as he would've, had it been someone else's misfortune to be chomped on by a Boko Baba.

"Yeah, well," the young hero said, pausing only to destroy the plant, "Don't expect it to happen too often."

A silence drew over both hero and guide, and the young Outsetter moved forward for a while before he came to an unfamiliar area of the forest.

"Say… what is this place?" he asked, eyebrows furrowing at the strange scenery. His guide just seemed to shrug.

'_It's different than what it used to be, that's for sure. It's as if the ocean came in and made this region a valley. It used to be a big hill… At least, I'm pretty sure. Hard to tell without a map.' _

'Navi' sounded quizzical when he spoke next.

'_By the way, wasn't there supposed to be a map to this place? You can usually find one in a treasure chest early on…'_

Link immediately flushed, hesitantly lifting his face to the sky.

"Would this map have been written in old Hylian…?" he asked, trying not to betray his guilt. "Or have looked, like, really old?"

'_You lost it, didn't you?' _It was more of a statement than a question.

"Well…" the boy began, awkwardly scratching the back of his head, "It's not that I didn't need the map… but I can't read Old Hylian anyways, so I kind of threw it away," and his guide let out a loud sigh.

'_You don't say. I guess it's a good thing that I can see all around, then, huh?' _

"Yeah… and about that—" Link started, lifting his finger as he was about to ask his guide exactly how he could do all that, but the pseudo-fairy interjected.

'_Wait a minute. Predator alert. I don't recommend stepping forward for a minute or two. And I also suggest that you stay very, very quiet.' _The Outsetter nodded to show that he understood, and remained rooted in place for a moment.

Finally, the voice spoke up again.

'_Alright. Draw your sword very, very slowly. And for the love of Nayru, have your shield ready.' _

Link did so, and after a moment of heavy tension in the air, he stepped forward.

Immediately, a giant insect rushed him. It had brightly colored wings and a tail to match. Currently, though, its tail was releasing at least a dozen small, spiky animals that stuck to the boy's skin. They were each rather heavy, so every step that he took was delayed with the extra effort to move.

'_Remember that spinny thing I taught you? Use it now.'_

Granted, the Outsetter remembered _that_ attempt and was naturally a bit apprehensive, but… he figured that his guide had never steered him wrong before. Teased him? Yes. Scared him beyond all reason on more than one occasion? Yup. Refrained from giving him information? Definitely.

But, again. The pseudo-fairy had never—not once!—done anything to hurt him.

So he stuck his sword straight out, and spun around.

Immediately, the black spike balls fell off of him, and each exploded in a flash of light.

Amazingly, the boy even kept his balance. Which, as he hurriedly glanced around, he decided was a good thing, since the giant moth-thing was coming straight for him.

'_Aim for the wings! Half of its power comes from its flight ability!' _

The voice wasn't a moment too soon. The mutated butterfly was about to ram Link, but instead of playing defense (which he was far too used to), he slashed his sword at the creature's back and beamed when its wings shattered.

'_Nice, kid. Now aim for its eyes or tail. Anything that glows, pretty much.'_

And, since his guide was nothing if not consistent, the advice was sound.

In what seemed like seconds, the room was quiet again, and the boy hero was catching his breath. No real damage had been done—to the Outsetter's delight—excepting for a few snags in his tunic.

A moment later, a treasure chest appeared.

It showed up not two feet away from the boy, so no one could really blame him for the loud shriek he let out in surprise.

000

…Excepting his guide, who immediately dropped to his knees and clutched his ears in pain.

000

'_WOULD YOU STOP THAT?' _the boy's guide was suddenly shouting, and Link immediately felt guilty. For what, he wasn't quite sure, but apparently, whatever it was, it was enough to cause the pseudo-fairy a fair amount of pain.

"…What did I do?"

'_Gah! Whatever! Just don't… don't screech like that again. Please. It seriously hurts." _The pseudo-fairy remedied his words, and Link could tell that his guide felt a little guilty for yelling now.

"I'm sorry… I didn't know. Honest." The boy's eyes were pleading, and his guide just sighed, still trying to get the ringing out of his ears.

'_Don't sweat it. Just… ahem. Let's move on, shall we?' _

Link nodded, moving forward and glancing around the room. The door he'd walked through was still barred, so he scratched his head in confusion.

"Move… where, exactly?" he asked, staring at nothing in particular.

'_How should I know? I might be able to see all around you, but it's physically impossible to know everything.' _

The Outsetter sighed. He glanced back towards the treasure chest beside him, and gave it a half-hearted kick. It opened with a click, revealing an object that Link couldn't help but grin at.

He picked it up and lifted it triumphantly into the air.

'_You got the boomerang! Set it to X, Y, or Z and you can target up to five items at a time!' _his guide suddenly exclaimed, and Link stared.

"…What?"

An eerie silence descended on the forest.

'_Um,' _the pseudo-fairy sounded awkward when he spoke up again. _'I don't know where that came from. It just… seemed so __**natural**__… Sorry.' _

The young hero cleared his throat and, ignoring his guide's _strange_ comment, picked up the boomerang, concentrating hard on the door with the bars over it. He threw it as best as he could at one of the bars, and watched in disappointment when it missed.

Link frowned and sat down in the grass, crossing his arms. Why did it have to be a _boomerang_? There was nothing great about it. All it was, was a piece of wood carved into a weird shape!

'_Um, kid?' _his guide was suddenly saying, but the Outsetter refused to look up.

'_Hey! I'm talking to you!' _The pseudo-fairy let out a loud sigh.

000

Really, the Hero of Time didn't particularly enjoy seeing his charge get hurt… but sometimes…

The boomerang finally came back to its new owner, and struck his head with a loud 'THUMP!"

…Sometimes, it just seemed like karma.

Still, Link didn't like seeing… the other Link (he was still a little weirded out by the whole 'name' thing) get pummeled by the boomerang, so he rolled his eyes and made a mental note to tell the boy to duck next time.

000

'_You do realize that it's a __**boomerang**__, right? You know, famous for coming back around…? Also famous as a comedic device used to annoy the protagonist? Used as a literary tool to represent Karma? Any of this familiar territory?' _the pseudo-fairy sounded irritated, and the young warrior pretended that he knew why.

"Not really. Outset isn't exactly the literary capitol of the islands, if you know what I mean," he managed to grunt in-between angry throws of his new (completely useless) boomerang. "We were lucky to get the Legend of the Hero of Time on our shores, and even that was something that barely happened. We're so far south that all of the other islands just… forget about us, more times than not. I think the only reason that Beedle hangs out there so much is 'cause he pities us. But it's better than nothing, you know?" The boomerang rebounded from the post and bruised his stomach.

" …Except, when we finally did get our copy of the legend… it was soggy from being dropped in the ocean, and hard to read, not to mention written in Old Hylian, and we didn't even have a schoolteacher on our island, so no one could read it. My grandma was the only person on the entire island that even spoke that language, but by then, she couldn't really see too well. So it's frustrating that I have to do all this, and dress up as the Hero of Time, when I don't even know the full details of his legend! And wave his sword around to save my sister? What's that about? I never said that I _wanted_ to be a hero! The King of Red Lions just… cornered me, I guess. And I'm not even a teenager yet! And why would I be the first choice to do this, when I'm not strong or brave or smart… and… and… and why!" he was shouting by then, and threw the boomerang at the posts above the door (for the millionth time).

"Won't!" which in turn bounced off of it and hit him in the head…

"This," and the boy finally threw the boomerang at the ground.

"Work?"

000

The Hero of Time was fairly certain that that was the most he'd ever heard the boy say at one time. And, quite frankly, he didn't really know how to respond, mainly since it was an angry rant, and the kid was already frustrated enough with his fail of a boomerang.

But, he figured that it was better than getting a sling-shot.

…Even though he was determined not to say that part out loud.

Glancing back at the screen in front of him, he saw the young Outsetter sitting on the treasure chest, his boomerang half-stuck into the ground and the boy himself was apparently very interested in the grass.

"Hey…" Link said quietly to the screen. "You don't have to bottle it all up, you know? It's okay to be upset about everything."

He felt like an elephant in a china-store, and he was about as likely as one to break the kid.

The Wind Waker just looked pitifully up at the screen—probably not even knowing that he was looking his guide directly in the eye.

It shattered the Hero of Time's heart to see that the kid was actually sniffling—sniffling! His eyes were wet and everything, and Link couldn't help but feel upset. He kept forgetting how young the boy was, and even more often forgot much, exactly, he could sympathize.

"Look. I know that I might not be the most perfect guide for you. And I know I yell, sometimes, and I can be sarcastic and rude… but you do know that I'm here for you, right? I'm not just here to tell you what room to go into next, either. I'm here to help you through anything you encounter. So, right now, I know you're upset, and rightly so, but I need to know that you'll be okay."

And, like a single drop falling into still water, the ripples immediately flowed out.

000

A tear or two were flowing freely from the Hero of Winds' eye, and even though he felt awful—as if he'd been soaked in his own tears and then hung out to dry—he couldn't help but feel a little bit better because of his guide's speech.

"You really mean all that?" the Outsetter asked, wiping one eye with the sleeve to his shirt.

'_Yes, I really, really do.' _'Navi' paused for a moment, but Link was okay with that, because as far as he was concerned, enough words had been spoken for the next several days.

The sun moved ever so slowly across the sky, but once there was a noticeable difference in the sun's position, the pseudo-fairy cleared his throat.

'_We should probably be moving on now. And that boomerang of yours? Use your wrist a little more. I'd give you an example… but, eh,' _his guide stopped talking for a moment and awkwardly chuckled. _'I think you've figured out, by now, that I can't exactly show ya much.' _

But even though his guide could be thick-skulled and rude, even bordering on obnoxious (especially when rotting sideways-elevators were present), and couldn't even visually lead him, Link decided that he was okay with it like that.

With optimism on his side, the young Hero of Winds didn't even get hit in the head more than five times before he got the hang of his boomerang.

…

Things progressed slowly but surely as the Hero of Winds kept moving forward. Unfortunately, things were always a bit more delayed than they would've been otherwise, but without a map, treasure-chests were always harder to find. Still, the boy and his guide made a great pair and steadily conquered the forest.

However, after several hours of wandering around and not being able to find the Boss Key, Link was getting a little testy.

Especially when all of the chests seemed to contain completely useless items.

'_You got a rupee! Unfortunately, your wallet's already full, so you can't keep it with you!' _

"Would you stop with the announcer voice already? I think I know when my wallet's full, thankyouverymuch!"

Yes. Everyone gets a bit frustrated when lost items cannot be found, and even more so when you need such items to save a family member, and have been looking for such for too long to be healthy.

'_Ya don't have to yell. Eeesh. And besides, I think we'll find the Boss Key soon, anyways.' _The pseudo-fairy seemed chipper at the moment, and Link was about ready to throttle him.

How, exactly, one could throttle a disembodied voice, we cannot know, but the Outsetter was prepared to defeat the laws of physics to make it possible.

"Oh yeah? And why's that? Because we're going to enter this room," the young hero grumbled, whilst entering said room, "And guess what? We're not going to find the Key in this chest or the next one, or the next one, either!"

'_Hey, kid? Why don't you take a good look at the treasure chest, then?' _

And the chest was blue and gold and shaped differently than the others.

Link nearly cried tears of joy—_nearly_. He did hug the chest, though.

'_Geez, kid, you're embarrassing me! Just open the darn box, will ya?' _'Navi' ordered, and the Outsetter frowned at having to leave his 'one true love' but kicked open the chest nonetheless.

'_You got the Boss Key! Now you can defeat the Boss of this dungeon—you can only use the key in this dungeon.'_

Link glared at the sky. "I'm not kidding. Would you stop that, please? I feel like a wall is being broken somewhere."

The literary reference soared over both guide and guidee's head.

'_I make no promises. But you do realize that there's no reason that you can't just go and fight the bad guy now, right? It's not even late afternoon yet. You might even be done by sunset!' _

The Wind Waker's irritation at 'Navi's' chipperness was increasing. Thankfully, his guide backed off.

'_Ehem. I suggest going left, 'kay? Shortcut. Although, you might want to get out your Deku Leaf…'_

…

**;_; I am so ready to get out of the Forbidden Woods. Could you tell, what with the skipping around and all? Don't get me wrong, this is a very fun dungeon to play through, but that's just it—it's fun to PLAY through. Writing about it? Not so much. It took me maybe a few hours to get through all of it, and that was mainly because I would always have to save and quit and come back to it later. …Meaning that I had to re-do several rooms to get back to where I was. **

**But still! This has taken me a few weeks to write. A few weeks does not compare well to a few hours, let me tell you that. **

**Anyways, I'm glad that we're just about to the Boss Battle. It'll (obviously) be in the next chapter, so please stay tuned~**

**Author's note: I have been wanting to use that 'Fourth Wall' line for weeks. Finally! And yes, it'll be used more in the future. Because, let's face it—Ocarina of Time Link is basically just playing Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. He is! Just… with more talking. And he can't outright control Link. But I stand by my point—he's looking through a screen, for pete's sake!**

**Read and Review, pleaaaaase? **


	7. BigTime Gardening

The boss door stood in front of him, and honestly, Link didn't know whether to sigh in relief that he might finally be getting out of the forest, or pee his pants in fear of the battle to come. So, in his body's impasse, he simply stood stock-still, paralyzed with shock.

'_Um. Kid? See, the thing about a locked door is that you're supposed to open it…' _

'Navi's' voice seemed to snap him out of his trance. …Almost. His hands shook as he reached up to put the key in the lock, but the pseudo-fairy's voice snapped him out of it.

'_Not right now! Turn around and pick up one of those weird-looking cocoons. There's probably some heart-containers in it.' _

The Outsetter almost grinned at the prospect of postponing the battle, but he could almost _hear_ 'Navi' rolling his eyes. So, he hurried up and threw the strange-looking nest-thing at the edge of the cavern.

…It exploded to reveal a blue rupee. Link tilted his head to the side and went to pick it up, but unfortunately, his wallet was already full. He threw another one at the wall—toooooootally not trying to restore his lost pride; nope, not at all—and this time, he was pleased to note that it contained a fairy.

Unfortunately, he realized too late that he couldn't find a bottle to capture it in. Not that he'd tell his guide his intentions, anyways. Something told him that 'Navi' wouldn't be too pleased at bottled fairies, anyways.

But it healed him as it flew away, so Link found himself at the door once more. He almost panicked, but the voice was back again, and it told him to relax.

A few deep breaths later, he found himself ready to fight.

…Even if he felt a bit panicked, but really, wouldn't anyone be panicked?

The chains rattled as they fell away from the door, and the stone slid away from the cavern. Link walked through, gulped, and sidled against the doorway as he entered.

A lavender light drew his attention, though, and he quickly lost focus. Something was wrong there, a voice in the back of his head told him, but everything was just so pretty…

'_What are you doing?' _'Navi' yelled, and the Hero of Winds looked dazed for a minute, almost having forgotten that he had a guide. _'There's a monster at the center of this room—there always is! Keep your sword drawn and your boomerang out!' _

"But why would there be a monster here…?" the Outsetter wondered aloud, tilting his head to the side, as if he'd honestly forgotten.

His guide sounded almost panicked when it spoke up again. _'Link! Remember what you're doing! This is no time to…' _And the words suddenly stopped coming. The Outsetter heard a sharp intake of breath from the pseudo-fairy, and glanced lazily to the sky. _'Some kind of illusion… I think there's also some kind of gas in here. It's getting rid of your resolve to fight, boy! Keep your wits about you!' _

Link was still confused, though. "But this is such a big, pretty flower… there's no monster here, Navi…" and suddenly, a small Korok waved to the hero from the middle of the room. "Oh! Look! There's Makar… See? He must have already escaped."

The hero walked towards the Korok, smiling, but his guide growled a warning. _'Stay back. There's something about this place that really makes my skin crawl…'_

"Oh, please, there's nothing to be worried about. This is kind of pretty, actually… and there are these giant flower petals, too… they're so… soft…" The Outsetter moved as if he were in a dream, and he only succeeded in worrying his guide further.

'_Kid, I'm not playing. Stay back against the wall. In forest adventures, the boss always, __**always**__ hides somewhere for a few minutes until you get close enough to see it. But the minute you look up at the ceiling, it'll drop down or… or something.' _

But it was as if Link couldn't even hear his guide anymore. And, to no one's surprise, it worried 'Navi' to no end. The young hero kept walking forward, and soon, he was within an arm's reach of the Korok. But the creature had a strange look on its face… Link thought that he looked far too sad to be in such a beautiful place.

000

The Hero of Time saw the danger far before Link did. He saw the tentacle wrapped around Makar before Link did, but something told him that even if he shouted for the boy to move, he wouldn't listen.

But at such a close range, he couldn't help but see Makar's face…

000

'_Saria?' _his guide was suddenly screaming, and the Korok was pulled back impossibly far. In its place, though, a giant Boko Baba rose from the ground.

The young Outsetter's eyes widened and he scrambled backwards. But in his haste to get away, he tripped over the many roots covering the ground and landed hard against the wall.

'_Link! Are you okay?' _'Navi' was yelling, and the Hero of Winds barely had time to nod before one of the vines was coming at him.

And suddenly, he felt something wrap around his leg. In his shock from the last couple seconds, he was a bit slow on his reaction time, and his guide had to yell his name several times before he heard it.

'_Get up! You have to use your sword to cut the tentacle off! NOW!' _

His movements were slow, but both guide and guide-ee decided that slow movements were better than none. He finally sawed off the tentacle, but he was almost directly over the Venus Fly Trap by then.

'_Deku Leaf! Quick!'_

The teeth had almost closed around his ankle when he finally got out the magical item. Link sailed over to the other side of the room.

Panting heavily, he leaned against the wall to better support himself.

'_Ready to start listening to me, now?' _'Navi' asked, and Link nodded his assent, mainly because he was too tired to do much else. _'Alrighty, then. I highly recommend you run keep moving around this arena, because, you see those tentacles?' _the Outsetter glanced up at one moving his way, eyes widening as one came directly over him and he barely dodged out of the way in time. _'Yeah. You might want to keep moving so you won't have to be so paranoid about dodging in time.' _

Link bit his the corner of his lip, but wordlessly agreed and started to run a full circle around the creature.

'_Good… just like that. Now, get out your boomerang, and look for something to hit.' _

"What?" the young hero yelled, looking incredulously towards the monster. "I thought that you knew what you were doing!"

'_When did I ever say that?' _the voice asked with what could only be a smirk, and Link growled in annoyance. _'Heh, very threatening. But, really, I do know what I'm doing. I just don't know if I'll be around forever, y'know? I want you to learn how to defeat creatures on your own, too.' _

"Doesn't that," the Outsetter paused, jumping in fright away from a patch of spiked vines that had suddenly appeared in front of him, "kind of defeat the purpose of a guide?"

'_Well… Not really. A guide is supposed to be, well, a guide. Remember, kid. You're the one on this quest. Not me. And I don't know if I'm going to be able to be with you forever. So, I'd prefer it if you'd learn how to fight on your own, too.' _

Link sighed, knowing that 'Navi' was right. Still, he wondered about the strange sadness in his pseudo-fairy's voice. He hoped that his guide was okay…

000

Because, of course, the Hero of Time had lost Navi in the end. He woke up one morning, not long after his quest's end, and… she was gone. No note, no goodbye speech… nothing to remember her by. So when Zelda had called on him to defeat the monsters that were still active in the far west, he was virtually helpless without her.

Link would never admit it, but he missed her advice—even the useless bits. He had no clue what to do without her.

…He amended that statement after a moment.

Really, he was still good at puzzles, and had an uncanny knack for figuring out an enemy's weakness, but he wasn't as good as he was with Navi there to help him. There were obvious things that he missed out on—everything from the sudden release of a dragon's armor if you hit it in just the right spot, to the one weak spot he hadn't been able to find when it mattered most.

He blinked in the sudden change of light from the screen, and saw that, as per usual, his charge could use a little bit of help.

The Hero of Time transformed back into the role he was supposed to be playing.

000

'_What'd I say about using your boomerang?' _the disembodied voice asked him, and Link was embarrassed to realize that he'd forgotten.

"Um… sorry… it's just kind of hard to aim when I'm running. Oh!" the boy suddenly exclaimed, noting the vines hanging from the 'roof' of the cavern. "I think I'm supposed to hit those… But how can I without stopping?"

Somehow, that seemed to be the right answer. _'Right. Sorry. It's always a lot harder to hit a moving target, and it's worse when you're the one moving… Um, how about this?' _the voice paused, letting him dodge out of the way of more vines popping out of the ground. _'Keep running for a bit, and see if there's ever a lull in its attacks. Like, between vine attacks, or those weird clusters coming from the dirt.'_

Link nodded, keeping his pace.

It didn't take long for the young hero to figure out the creature's pattern. Three cluster attacks, then the single vine ones. He didn't really know how to get around those, but it always took them a while to figure out where he was. So, he took careful aim at the vines holding up the giant plant, and…

Five of the vines were cut, but almost immediately, the tentacle next to him struck his shoulder.

'_Link!' _'Navi' cried out for what must have been the third time that day. _'You okay?' _

"Well, duh," the Outsetter said with his best impression of a cocky smile—not the easiest thing to do when his arm was bleeding—and it seemed to relieve the pseudo-fairy. "It's barely a scratch."

'_Somehow, I doubt that… but it doesn't look like there's much we can do about that, right?' _

Link nodded, already taking off around the giant plant again.

Truth be told, his arm felt strangely numb. The young hero supposed that that was both a good and bad thing. Good, because it wouldn't distract him from doing what he needed, and bad… well, bad because it wasn't ever a _good_ thing to feel numb.

But he got his boomerang out, again, anyways, and sprinted to the other side of the arena, where the vines still held up the plant. He could see that there were about ten left—two shots that he still needed to make.

He threw the boomerang as hard as he could, while still throwing it correctly. It seemed to work, and cut the five vines for that side.

And, just as last time, he'd been standing the for too long, and still needed his boomerang to come back to him. The vine struck at him, and he saw it coming out of the corner of his eye a split second too late. Link barely had time to duck to keep it from slashing his neck, but it cut him across his forehead right as he caught his boomerang.

Again, the wound felt strangely numb.

'_Alright, kid, hang in there,' _and from his guide's obvious worry, the cut must have looked a lot worse than what he felt. So, he was a little surprised when blood started to drip into his eye. Link wiped it away with his arm, a little intimidated by the stain.

'_You can clean that later. Remember the other tentacles-type things in this dungeon?' _'Navi' asked, and Link briefly recalled the ones that would always grow back when he cut them away from the creepy 'eye-flower'. _'Yeah. I have the sneaking suspicion that these will grow back if you don't cut them away really, really soon.' _

So Link threw his boomerang at the remaining five vines, right as a cluster appeared before him, tripping him and sending him face-first into it.

The young hero heard his name being called, but was too braced for the pain to acknowledge it.

But some unknown force stopped the cluster from hurting him.

Link fell onto the ground, yes, but he fell into something almost… soft. He tentatively opened an eye, and found that he was lying on top of a giant, silky flower petal.

He was confused about his luck for a moment, but then he heard his pseudo-fairy yelling something.

'_Up! Up! Get up! You have to deliver the finishing move to this thing, or else you'll have to do this over again!' _

So the young hero scrambled to his feet and unsheathed his sword, swinging it wildly at the creature in the center—which turned out to be a giant Boko Baba.

He had just been about to slice its head from its body when he felt the petals closing around him. Link hesitated for just a second, but 'Navi' suddenly spoke up.

'_No! You'll have to redo this about five times if you don't decapitate that thing! Keep swinging!' _

And so the Hero of Winds did.

One firm cut later, the Boko Baba's head was lying somewhere far away, and the peaceful atmosphere that had been in the room earlier returned.

Link breathed a sigh of relief, and sat down heavily onto the ground. He watched with a tired smile as the entire plant seemed to explode into a large, black and purple cloud.

Once the smoke dissipated, Makar was standing in the center of the room, and Link waved to the small creature—which looked no bigger than the hero's head—who smiled brightly and jogged towards him eagerly.

'_Saria?' _his guide suddenly said, and Link furrowed his eyebrows. No, he wanted to say, this is Makar. Who is this Saria you're referring to? But his guide cleared his throat suddenly, and the tired hero decided not to press further.

000

The Hero of Time could've sworn that the creature in front of him was none other than Saria. As different as it looked, there was something unmistakable about the aura it carried. There was something magical at work here…

But Link supposed that his charge might have known who Saria was, and was quick to cover for himself.

"Um," he started, clearing his throat loudly. "This looks a lot like that girl who gave the Hero of Time his first ocarina." _And was his first friend, his best friend, and the person who he could always go to when he needed help. _

But the boy didn't seem to really hear him, and Link breathed a sigh of relief.

000

"Are you the swordsman who rescued me?" Makar asked Link, who just laughed, nodding a little. The Korok grinned. "You have my thanks! When I saw the world go dark around me, I thought my time on earth was over…"

Link got the overwhelming urge to hug the little Korok, but Makar started to speak again. "But… why are you here, swordsman?"

Link raised a finger to explain, but Makar sucked in a sudden breath and spoke in a slightly panicked voice. "The Ceremony! The Great Deku Tree must have sent you! Oh, no, I'm in big trouble… I must get out of here immediately!"

The young Outsetter just patted the unbelievably cute creature on the head and walked towards the gust of wind swirling in the center of the arena. He sheathed his sword (along with his boomerang) and in one hand picked up the oversized heart container, and in the other, he grabbed Makar's hand. …Stub thing. He wasn't really sure what it was, really, but it just seemed to make him look all the cuter.

He swirled, Korok in tow, towards the surface, and seemed to be transported directly in front of the Great Deku Tree.

The Tree's voice startled Link, at first, but he quickly tuned into what he was saying.

"Oh, Makar, you have returned safely!"

The Korok seemed to have been sitting on Link's head throughout the teleportation, and jumped down so that he was standing directly in front of the Great Tree.

"I'm so sorry, Great Deku Tree…" Makar said with what could only be a sniffle, "I know you warned us many times, but still I did not listen…"

The Deku Tree surprised both Link and the Korok with a rich laugh. "Do not worry, Makar. You are safe now. Just be more careful from now on." Looking to the hero, though, he said, "You have done well, Link. I must thank you for your brave deeds."

The Tree's branches shook, and from them a bright green orb floated down. Link's eyes widened. "Here is that which I have promised you. Please accept it."

'_That's Farore's pearl, Link! Nice job!' _his guide said with might just have been the only sincere smile that his 'fairy' had given him the whole time. Not that the hero could see it or anything, but he felt it nonetheless.

"Thank you," the Outsetter said quietly, both to the Tree and to his guide.

"It is my hope that this pearl will lead you to a fair destiny!" the Deku Tree said with a broad grin.

'_Well. I wouldn't go so far as to say __**that**__, but this guy was always one for melodramatic speeches,' _his pseudo-fairy cut in, and Link couldn't help but laugh a little.

To Makar, the tree again spoke. "Do not cry, Makar. All is well, now." He paused for a second, then continued. "Please… Play your songs for me, as you always do."

The Korok snapped to attention, suddenly, and his eyes—?—widened. "Oh! That's right! We must begin our ceremony soon, before the day ends! I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting—let the ceremony begin!"

And somehow, the creature managed to pull a violin from thin air, and turned to Link.

"Oh, great Link…" Makar said with a smile, "As my thanks to you, I will play harder today than I usually do! I hope you enjoy it…"

And the little Korok launched into an absolutely beautiful piece that, to Link, sounded almost familiar…

"I could've sworn I've heard this before," he whispered to his guide, who seemed slightly panicked when he answered.

'_Ah! No, no, I don't think you've ever heard this before! Must be just a weird coincidence!' _the pseudo-fairy finished with a very obviously fake laugh, and Link rolled his eyes, before getting back to the music.

000

In retrospect, the Hero of Time wondered if he really should've played Saria's Song for the boy while he was sleeping…

000

After the song was over, and all had danced to their content, glowing seeds descended from the Deku Tree's highest branches.

There were quiet phrases spoken from the tree-top, but Link could catch bits and pieces nonetheless.

"This year… again… splendid seeds!" one said, and the next seemed to be replying.

"…These seeds… continue to… new forests across…"

"…Go, Koroks! To… sea!" one shouted, and the others yelled down to Link and Makar and the Great Deku seeds phrases that were obviously good-byes.

"Take care!"

"See you all next year!"

And to Link, one with a brown face shouted, "Farewell, Great Swordsman! May the winds of chance bring us together again someday!"

And with that, the Koroks disappeared into the sky.

…

'_All right, Kiddo. Time to go,' _'Navi' said, and Link blankly nodded. He was a little surprised that after adventuring to find Makar for so long, everything was over that quick. But he wasn't really one for extravagant goodbyes, and headed for the exit.

Right as he was about to leave, though, his guide stopped him.

'_Almost forgot. You might wanna have those cuts looked into…' _

"But I'm fine! I don't even really feel anything, honest!" Link protested, and somehow, that was the wrong answer.

'_Exactly. That's kind of what I'm worried about. Those are some pretty big gashes, kid, and it's pretty amazing that you're not, you know… screaming in pain?' _and the hero crossed his arms indignantly.

"I'm fine."

'_And you might be, but what's the problem with getting them looked at, anyways?' _

"I said I'm fine!"

000

The Hero of Time knew exactly why his charge was being so obstinate. He'd been so… so similar! But he had also gotten some pretty awful infections from wounds that went unchecked, and he had the distinct feeling that the monster's tentacles were dipped into something rather strange… After all, there was no reason for them to have been sharp enough or hard enough to injure the boy.

000

'_I won't stop bugging you about this until you get those checked. I will personally fly around shouting, "Hey! Listen" every three seconds until you actually do.' _

The pseudo-fairy's threat did not go unheard, and Link winced as he remembered all of the legends of the Hero of Time's fairy, the real Navi, who did just that.

"You… you wouldn't!"

'_I would. And believe me, it's already rather tempting.' _

"Please… please! Anything but that!" Link pleaded, hands clasped together as he begged.

'_Get them checked, then,' _and now his guide had his best warning voice out, and the boy was almost to tears, leaving 'Navi' to wonder what he did wrong.

'_Um… I'm… sorry?' _the pseudo-fairy tried, but Link just sniffled a little and sat down on the grass.

"I don't like doctors."

'…_Why?' _the 'fairy' asked, thoroughly confused.

"…"

'_Hey, it's okay. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to…' _

"They gave my daddy a surgery and he…" the boy trailed off, but 'Navi' was pretty sure about what he'd been about to say.

'_Oh… I see.' _

The moment was awkward, and the tension was so thick that you could've cut it with a butter knife.

000

The Hero of Time really didn't know what to say to that. He knew what he wanted to _do_—jump through that darn screen and give the kid a big hug—but unfortunately, the odds of that happening were slim to none.

He really didn't know how this thing worked, after all. And he really didn't want to ask. Those ex-sages were _terrifying_.

000

"I'm fine. It happened a long time ago," Link said, and wiped his eyes with his sleeve… which was already covered with red. The hero could feel his guide holding back orders to go get everything checked out.

'_Well… alright, then…' _'Navi' said slowly, as if considering something.

Silence descended once more.

Sometimes, the hero thought as he stared at the exit still sitting in front of him, I just can't catch a break.

'_I have an idea!' _the 'fairy' exclaimed suddenly, startling Link out of his thoughts.

"What?"

'_I said, I have an idea! Take off your boots,' _his guide ordered, and Link complied, acting more out of bewilderment then obedience. _'Alrighty, then. Take off your tunic, and your sword, and all of your other equipment.' _

"…Even my shield and the bottle I carry around?" the hero asked, thoroughly confused.

'_Everything. …Except your pants and stuff. Don't really wanna see that. But everything else, including your belt and your undershirt goes off.' _

A moment or two later, Link looked embarrassedly around the forest, wondering why his guide was asking him to strip down to, basically, his underwear.

'_Now. Jump into the stream.' _

And suddenly, everything clicked.

The young hero splashed around in the water for a few minutes, and his guide even seemed happy, because even though he kept reminding him to keep splashing water on the cut on his head, there was a smile attached to everything.

"Okay," Link said after what must have been half an hour of enjoying the cool water. "This has got to be your best idea yet."

'_Better than, say, using the deku seed to destroy the creepy eye?'_

"That doesn't even compare."

'_What about using the boomerang to cut the vines from the giant flower?' _

Link laughed. "Close call, but… this feels a thousand times better." And as if to demonstrate, he dived under the shallow water again.

When he surfaced, 'Navi' seemed to smirk. _'What about using the creepy sideways elevator to get across the void?' _

Leave it to the world's biggest jerk to bring _that_ up.

"I still haven't forgiven you for that, you know," the young hero said as threateningly as he could. Unfortunately, though, since he wasn't much older than twelve and looked about ten, his guide found it hard to take him seriously.

'_I know. That's why I keep reminding you.' _

Link grunted, but found it hard to stay angry at his _major-jerk-face-fairy _(a term he'd be using as soon as stopped laughing from how ridiculous it sounded) when the late afternoon sun was warm on his back and the water was cool on everything else.

"Why didn't I do this earlier?" the boy asked after a minute or two. He was rather surprised at how much dirt he'd managed to get on himself during his adventure, and was wondering why he hadn't taken a bath day—no, weeks—ago. He sighed in relief as the goo that had been piling up in his hair with every Chu fight.

'_Because they were Koroks around that would've probably killed you for 'polluting' their holy stream?' _his guide supplied helpfully, and Link suddenly bit his lip. Again, he mused, leave it to his guide to ruin an otherwise amazing moment.

"Um…"

'_Relax, kid. I'm just joking. The water's probably pure enough to kill any germs it comes into contact with.' _

"Oh…" the young hero said after a moment more. Still, he felt rather awkward from 'Navi's comment, and was a bit antsy to leave, then. He was about to change back into his tunic, when he noticed just how blood-and-dirt stained it seemed to be. He couldn't help but crinkle his nose at it, and his guide laughed.

'_Just dunk it in the stream a couple times and let it dry out on the grass. Besides, isn't it time you had some dinner?' _

Link decided that maybe his guide wasn't all bad, especially since he managed to find every delicious fruit, nut, and seed that could be eaten from the nearby trees.

…

Almost two hours later, after having what must have been a feast of edible forestry, Link finally acknowledged that it was time to leave. His tunic was dry, as were his boots and all of his equipment (he'd dunked his sword in the water for a few minutes after he realized just how much goo had been splattered onto it in his fights with the Chus or the Boko Babas).

After waving goodbye to the Deku Tree and Makar one last time, he finally walked through the dark exit.

Night had fallen, and his boat was patiently waiting beside the lowest platform.

"So this place, too, has been attacked by Ganon. Could he already be regaining his power?" the King of Red Lions said when Link was close enough to talk.

Without waiting for the boy to answer, the boat continued. "Link, you must get the remaining pearl! It lies in a place northwest of here. We must set sail immediately!"

Link nodded, and used his wind-waker to set the wind direction. He got his hard-earned sail out and boarded the boat, willing his tired eyes to stay open as he controlled the rudder.

'_Alright, kid, no arguments. Bedtime,' _his guide suddenly said, and Link felt inclined to agree with him. Still, there was always the possibility of a sea attack…

'Navi' seemed to pick up on his hesitation. _'Either I or the King of Red Lions will wake you if there's trouble. Besides,' _he added with a smirk, _'you're pretty much useless with that sword of yours if you're tired.' _

The Outsetter pouted at the insult, but seemed to know that it was true. So he got out the blanket he'd gotten from the Hero of Time's room, and drifted off into a well-deserved slumber.

It was pitch black and he felt wet and cold all over when a voice called his name…


	8. Interventions of the Zelda Kind

It was most definitely night, the Hero of Time mused tiredly at the screen. Truth be told, he was a little tired, too, but this wasn't the time or the place. The boy was sleeping soundly—a little too soundly, he thought to himself, but quickly shushed the idea because he hated how much of a worrier he'd become—through all of the rain and thunder and lightning.

And boy, was there a lot of it.

The waves were choppy and had been splashing over the side of the boat, and the constant rainfall sure didn't help. It didn't take long for the boat's inside to fill up, and the King of Red Lions had tipped to the side quite often to dump the liquid. Unfortunately, this kept making Link panic, because what if the boat tipped too far and the boy spilled over, too? He wasn't awake, and he was wrapped snugly inside of the blanket. He wouldn't even have time to take a breath!

The Hero of Time took a deep breath, then another, then another. It wouldn't do to panic. A few minutes later, rationality took over.

Link had a feeling that it was partially the late hour that was making him extra-jumpy. That, and the moon hadn't moved from its spot in the sky…

The King of Red Lions tipped once more, and the surge of panic that Link had tried so hard to bury came bursting forward once more. What if the boy drowned? What if he got hypothermia from the cold and the rain? What if he hit his head? What if… what if…

What if the Hero of Time learned how to quit worrying? Heroes tended to have extraordinarily good luck, as it was, anyway. But still…

Link rubbed his eyes tiredly, staring dully at the screen. Land was slowly approaching, and he supposed it was time to wake the boy up, anyways. Maybe it'd help 'Navi' to stay awake, too.

Internally, the Hero of Time groaned at the nickname he'd chosen. _It wasn't my fault_, he wanted to say. _I didn't want to make some kind of freaky paradox with the universe!_

He got a sudden, vague image of the worlds colliding. …It was rather creepy, in all honesty, and he shoved it aside. It was too late to be daydreaming. At a certain point, your mind only accepts random, feverish ideas. Link had a feeling that he'd already gotten to that point.

"Hey. Wake up, Link," he said loudly to the screen. The boy barely seemed to stir. "Hey! Wake up!" he shouted, considerably louder. Still, it did little to compete with the thunder. Or maybe the boy was just in too deep of a sleep to hear…

Without even opening his sleepy eyes, the young hero just turned over, muttering something about only needing a few more minutes. The Hylian guide almost groaned in frustration. Still, movement usually meant that the deepest part of sleep had subsided…

"Link! Get up! I know you're tired, but you need to wake up! You're almost to land, and the weather's bad!" the Hero of Time shouted. The Outsetter just turned over again, now lying face-first in the partially flooded boat…

Not a moment later, the boy shot up out of his sleeping position, coughing and sputtering. Link could only guess that … the other Link … had breathed in some of the water. The Hero of Time supposed it was a good thing.

OOO

'Navi' hadn't been lying about the bad weather. Now that he was awake, Link could feel the rain pelting his face. The clouds were so thick that it was nearly impossible to see his hand in front of his face, but there was a dark spot in the distance that was a tiny bit darker than the rest of the night. Sighing, the Wind Waker blinked a few times. The darkness didn't end.

To top it off, his head felt naked.

…His eyes shifted to the side, temporarily paranoid that someone had heard that thought. It wasn't that he felt _naked_ without it, per say, but he felt very, very incomplete without his floppy green cap. He'd hated it at first—especially when multiple villagers _and especially Tetra_ had laughed at him for it—but after adventuring with it for what must've been weeks by now, he didn't really want to part with it. There was also something almost magical about it, he mused. He could control the wind—how his hat could stay on for all that, he didn't know, but he was happy to have it.

So, it was no surprise that the young hero felt slightly panicked as he fished around the boat for his hat. It was soggier than he would've liked it to be, but with the weather the way it was around him, he wasn't about to start complaining. After managing to get himself untangled from the dripping wet blanket that had somehow managed to coil around him what must've been five times, Link stood up.

'_Woah, there. I wouldn't stand up, if I were you. The boat's pretty slippery…' _his guide said, and the Outsetter bit back a sarcastic remark. It was too early, and he'd gotten way too few hours of sleep, to be adventuring.

…Especially to some island off in the middle of nowhere to go get a pearl that would take forever to find.

'_You'll be docking in just a few sec…' _

"What?" Link whispered so that the King of Red Lions wouldn't hear, a bit confused as to why 'Navi' hadn't finished his sentence.

'_No… oh, no…' _the pseudo-fairy moaned, _'How could this have happened?'_

"What's going on?" The Outsetter crossed his arms, and tried to look threatening as he leaned on the King of Red Lion's mast for support. The floor of the boat was slippery, after all…

'_Great Fish Isle… something really, really bad has happened to it. I can feel it, Link. I can __**feel**__ it!' _the guide exclaimed.

The King of Red Lions looked back at Link, his wooden face cryptic but somehow… worried? It was hard to tell in the darkness. "Link, do you see it?" the boat asked. His voice was quiet against the thunder.

"What has… what has happened to this place?"

Before the boy could answer, though, the sailboat continued. "The Island… it is… We are too late. I knew we had precious little time… but I did not know how little…"

The King of Red Lions sailed forward, and Link held tightly to the boat's neck—both to keep from slipping, and because the sailboat seemed so distraught by Great Fish Isle's destruction.

"…A great water spirit named Jabun once lived here. But now… there isn't a trace of him." The King of Red Lions sailed closer to the island, and Link got out of the boat to see if there were any other survivors.

He found no one. Right as he was about to get back into the boat, though, a voice called to him through the darkness.

"Hoy, there! Link!"

The hero whirled around to face the speaker, but the sound was from far off, and it was hard to see in the darkness. As he was backing up, he found himself bumping into something solid, and he knew that it wasn't a rock.

Lightning flashed for a second, and it illuminated the white on the speaker—Link quickly found that this person had wings. _Quill?_

"So you're here!" Quill said, and he sounded relieved. "I've been looking all over for you. Are you, by chance, seeking the Great Spirit Jabun?"

Link nodded, but it went ultimately unseen in the darkness. The Rito responded to him, anyway.

"I am… sorry to report to you that he can no longer be found here," Quill said, and his voice was rather disappointed. "Just… look at how this place has been torn to pieces…"

Lightning illuminated the Rito enough so that Link could see that he was gesturing to the island around them. The hero was struck speechless (even more so than usual) at how disheveled the island had become.

"I suppose this, too, is the work of the shadow at the Forsaken Fortress. But fear not! Jabun was able to flee this island before it was attacked. He is in a safer abode, now."

The Outsetter let out a breath that he didn't know he'd been holding. He decided that it was a very, very good thing that the spirits have a sense of foresight…

"Would you like to guess where that place may be?" Quill asked, and Link wasn't sure if he liked the sudden, almost playful, tone that the Rito had taken on. "Go ahead. Guess!"

The hero raised a finger and was about to make his guess, but the postman cut him off.

"He is on the island where you were born." As if he wasn't sure that the boy had understood, he clarified further. "On Outset."

Link let out a cry of shock, and the Rito nodded against the lightning and thunder.

"Yet… even if you were to go to Outset now, you would not be able to see Jabun. The cave where he hides is blocked with a mighty stone slab that repels all who try to pass it. Why, not even the pirates with their powerful ship could get in…"

At this, Quill trailed off for a moment. Link waited for him to go on.

"I… I must apologize, Link. I thought if anyone would know of your whereabouts, it would be the pirates. I told them this tale without so much as a thought for the consequences. I don't know what they hoped to get," the postman said slowly, "But they immediately set sail for Outset Island and tried to break into the cave.

"…It is lucky they could not gain entrance. I have heard that they were last spotted on Windfall Island, but doing what… I do not know."

Link awkwardly scratched the back of his head. He was grateful for the advice, but everything was making his head spin. The pirates, sailing to his home island, where a water spirit suddenly chose to live, and Tetra and her crew were probably pillaging his home, and camping out in the forest… but then they were at Windfall, doing something that no one knows about? The young hero put a hand to his head to dispel the headache that was surely coming.

He was too tired for this.

"If you wish to see Jabun, I think you better search for the pirates on Windfall Island." Quill glanced around the island again, and both shivered at the rain and the feeling of dread that shrouded the island.

"What an eerie isle this is…" the postman said after a moment, summing up all they were feeling. "Everywhere else boasts clear skies and calm seas, but this place suffers under dark clouds and rain. Valoo must have been right when he asked me to bring word of Jabun to you…"

And, in a whisper barely heard above the thunder, the Rito finished.

"He called this island cursed."

Quill turned around, and Link watched as he spread his wings and looked ready to take off. But as an afterthought, the Rito started talking in a low, low voice. "I would counsel against staying here longer than you have to…

"…But that is your decision. I have told you of Jabun, so my task is complete!"

And just like that, the postman took off into the dark sky.

…

A moment later, Link was still staring into the place where Quill had been standing. "What was that about?" the hero asked in a whisper, trying not to be overheard by the King of Red Lions.

'_I… I don't know. But it seems as if Ganon has placed a curse upon this isle, and it's affecting the weather a great deal. Jabun is… relocated,' _his guide said in a careful voice, _'and the islanders are…' _

"Dead?" Link asked, his voice brittle.

'_Maybe. We … we don't know for certain. They were water-dwelling creatures—Zoras, maybe you've heard of them?—so they might be okay. It doesn't look good, though, with all of the destruction. They're often known to walk the land. And it's been a while since I've seen their kind… they might have evolved since my time.' _

"I was too late," the boy said with a frown, closing his eyes and allowing himself to sink onto a low rock. 

'_Don't think like that, kid.'_ 'Navi' said, and the voice seemed more firm than usual. _'It's not your fault. No one told you what was going to happen.'_

"But I spent hours just having _fun_, yesterday! I could've been here and stopped him! Don't you see that?" Link hissed, his whisper as loud as he could manage without the King of Red Lions overhearing.

'_And done what? The man is more powerful than you. You couldn't have stopped him,' _the pseudo-fairy said, and the boy felt as if someone was grabbing his face and forcing him to hold his head up. _'Don't let it get to you, kid. This adventure is to help people, and if you keep telling yourself that you're not good enough, or strong enough, or… __**fast**__ enough, then you lose hope. And if you lose hope, then these people have nothing to hold onto. Now hold your head up high, kid. Don't you dare let these guys bring you down.' _

Link felt compelled to listen to him. But there was still a nagging voice in the back of his head, rebuking him for his imperfection.

"Do you promise that… do you promise that I'll be faster next time?" the boy asked, and found himself staring at the lightning that lit up the sky. In the distance, he saw his island. He immediately wondered if his grandma was doing okay.

'_I can't promise that. But I can promise you that I'll help you do your best. That's all I can do… do you accept?' _'Navi asked so intently that Link felt compelled to answer.

"Yes."

'_Good. Now let's get going to Windfall and catch up to those pirates.' _

Link walked up to his boat. The King of Red Lions tried to explain further, but the hero had already gotten the gist of everything going on and tuned out rather quickly. He set the wind's direction to the north, and before he really registered what he was doing, he was headed to the merchant island.

…

Link didn't sleep for the rest of the voyage. His eyes refused to close, and both his blanket and clothes were positively soaked with water. ('Navi' had told him over and over that he'd catch cold if he didn't find some kind of warmth and shelter soon, but the hero shrugged him off. He didn't get sick easily, anyway.)

He had a feeling that if he slept, he'd be battered with a million nightmares. All would have the same theme, he knew: being too late to save those he loved. His grandma, his sister… all of the people on Great Fish Isle…

Only, Link thought with a deepening frown, that last one wasn't a nightmare. And no matter what his guide said, that wasn't okay.

Several hours passed. The Hero of Winds half-heartedly played with the rudder, but it was purely boredom-oriented. He knew very well that if a monster attacked him that he'd be a sitting duck… but Link couldn't bring himself to do much other than sit there.

000

The Hero of Time stared blankly at the screen in front of him. He'd been blinking slower and slower, each time for longer than the last, but he was determined not to doze off. With the way his charge was just sitting there, staring into space, he'd need to be the one to warn him of predators.

But surely, a quick nap couldn't hurt?

His eyes closed for nearly five minutes before he shook himself awake. No. He shouldn't, wouldn't, _couldn't_ sleep. Not when the boy was counting on him.

Unbeknownst to him, those gathered around at the Council of Heroes were watching both him and his charge.

000

"I say that we should give him a break for just a moment. Pause time in the world, or something. Link needs to sleep," Zelda whispered to the ancient Sage of Light, who was sitting next to her. The ethereal maiden simply smiled at her and held a finger to her lip, pointing to Hyrule's first king, who was just starting his address to the Council.

"I admit," the man started, "that the boy is doing well. The Hero of Time is doing well as a mentor, and the young Wind Waker is benefiting greatly. Still, there are still some flaws that need working out. Our Link needs to work on his guiding ability. He is… sloppy, sometimes."

Zelda reddened in anger, and her fists started to shake.

"I am not so sure that we should continue like this," the King went on, "Time's Hero is sinking further and further into lethargy and asetic tendencies. He will end up hurting both himself and the boy if this course is completed."

Without really knowing what she was doing, the Princess of Hyrule stood. The rest of the Council looked to her with wide eyes—no one, _no one _interrupted the King in the middle of his speech—and open mouths.

"Sir, you are wrong," the princess started, and the King gave her a quizzical look.

"Explain, girl," He said curtly.

"The mentoring is just as much for the Hero of Time as it is for the boy from Outset," Zelda looked closer at the faces staring at her, and elaborated. "You know as well as I do that Link has been acting… strange, as of late. He hasn't been eating well, nor has he been sleeping. And might I remind you that those of this Council are not entirely 'dead'. The goddesses respected us too much for that. They sent us here so that we would not have to grow old when we were bested. And as such, we became immortal. But immortal though we may be, we still require mortal comforts to continue to function."

The King looked even more impatient. "Yes, yes, girl. We know this already. We live here, do we not?" he asked, and the ex-sages of the room gave uneasy chuckles. "If you have a point, I suggest making it soon."

Zelda swallowed her pride and didn't retort to that. She cleared her throat and continued. "As I said before—this is for Link as much as it is for the Hero of Winds. If any one of you has faced more hardship than the Hero of Time and Keeper of the Sacred Ocarina, I suggest you speak up now."

The chamber was dead-silent.

"No? Because I really thought that some of you would've considered yourselves more of a hero than the one who saved Hyrule twice, and sacrificed most of his childhood for the good of our country." Zelda shot a glare to the King, who ignored the jab. "But, as you know, Link had to face many creatures to become the hero he is. That has had a lot of backlash to his well-being and general mental health. I cannot count the times I found him, sitting in his room, staring at the wall and wishing that he would have never become a hero—would never have… would never have had to see so much death."

The princess lowered her gaze, briefly, a small frown replacing her stony disposition. "How many of you have actually taken the time to notice this? Because I can guarantee that very, very few of you really knew him, or even took the time to learn more about him than what the legends said. He was always so cheerful in his mission…" She trailed off, picturing the smile he constantly wore as a boy. "But he has been sinking lower and lower. This has been his first chance to connect with someone new since he came here."

Others glanced up at her, slightly hurt, but she slammed her hand on the table and continued. "No. Don't give me those looks. You didn't give him the time of day when you had the chance. You were either too busy or too lazy to check on his well-being. I have been the only one to talk to him since we were transported here, and even then, he refuses to speak to me sometimes, because he blames himself for our relocation."

Her mind wandered to her comment about him being the reason that they were at the Realm of Heroes, and she buried it away. She couldn't think about it there. She'd deal with it later.

"He has always, always felt more at ease when there is someone he needs to take care of. There is no one here that fits that description; we are all safe. So this boy, the future Hero of Winds, is his last chance. Link needs this… and he will either have it and finally restore his happiness, or lose it, like you, the King, are suggesting, and spiral further into himself, until he finally gives up on himself."

"I will not stand for this," the King of Hyrule suddenly roared, but Zelda didn't back down.

"Dear King," she said, her voice dripping with a formality that she forced to the surface, "I pray not to harm your 'precious ego' and make you admit a mistake in front of the Council. So my formal request is to take a vote on whether or not to let the Hero of Time continue mentoring the boy from Outset."

Twenty minutes passed.

The tally was counted at twenty-four to one, in favor of continuing the Hero of Time's guardianship.

000

A moment later, Princess Zelda slipped into the room containing the battle-scarred hero. He was obviously fighting sleep—his heavy eyelids proved that much—and at first saw her as a hallucination.

"…Zelda…?" Link asked, rubbing his eyes in an effort to wake up.

"I'm here," she said, sitting down behind him and putting his head in her lap. "You should rest. You look tired."

"No. I can't…" he whispered, trying not to let the boy on the other side of the screen hear his conversation. The Outsetter seemed not to. "I have to watch him and make sure that nothing bad happens."

"I will alert you if he runs into any problems, rest assured," the princess said, running her fingers through his hair.

"Mmph. I appreciate the offer, I really do, but I can handle this… he's almost to Windfall, and if I get him to rent a room there, he'll be safe, and I can rest, too."

His logic was sound, or so he thought. Zelda, however, saw right through it.

"Honey, I don't think you'll make it 'till then. You obviously haven't looked in a mirror lately. You look awful."

Link rolled his eyes. "Always glad to hear how bad I look."

She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer, planting a kiss on his cheek. "You know what I meant. But enough talking. You need to rest, Link."

He was thoroughly tired, and his resolve crumbled when she put her hand in front of his bloodshot eyes.

Link fell asleep within seconds.

000

Many, many hours later, the King of Red Lions docked onto the far-side of the island, away from all of the houses.

"It is just as the postman told us," the boat started, and his voice roused the young hero from his daze. "The pirate ship has stopped here to avoid drawing the attention of the townsfolk. I know what they were researching, but if they are hoping to get their hands on Jabun's sacred gem…"

The King of Red Lions trailed off, and Link listened carefully.

"I doubt they would tell you anything directly if you ask them. Link, I think that you should try to find out what the pirates are up to… without them finding out about you."

The Outsetter nodded curtly, and stepped onto the island's beach. The sand was soft on his feet, and although it was still raining, he felt a little warmer at the activity. Jogging, he went off in search of the pirates.

XXX

**WOO! Finally finished this. Not sure how you guys are liking everything with OoT Link, but, I hope this clears up any confusion. Tell me how you guys feel about the plot so far! **


	9. The Wonders of Puns

**Let's just say that if I owned the Legend of Zelda, Link would have worn a longer skirt in Ocarina of Time. The kid has major modesty issues… Eesh. **

**Anyways. Disclaimers aside, this chapter's going up a little early (I usually post these either Sunday, Monday or Tuesday) so I hope you enjoy. **

…**And for once, it doesn't include Link managing to hurt himself in new and inventive ways! :D **

XXX

"Can't say that I've seen 'em," the owner of the bar said to him sweetly, and Link groaned in annoyance. "Sorry, kid, wish I could help you…"

Another customer walked up to the counter, then, and Link walked away, defeated. He was about to leave, but decided to stay to see if he could get some food or water. He did feel a little thirsty, after all—despite all of the rain water that he could've been drinking. Link sat down tiredly at one of the tables and waited for a waitress to take his order.

A man behind him was drinking something that smelled sour, and the hero wrinkled his nose. He honestly couldn't figure out why the adults seemed to like that stuff, and if the taste was anywhere near as bad as the smell…

"May I help you, kid?" the waitress asked, and Link looked up at her with bleary eyes. He nodded, and pointed to the milk advertised on the menu. For some reason, she giggled, but wrote down what he wanted on her notepad, anyways. "Anything else?" she asked, and the hero shook his head. The waitress smiled warmly and said, "It'll be ready momentarily," before walking off.

The Outsetter stared at where she had been standing for a while before he realized that she wasn't there anymore. He blinked, and looked back to the exit. He was one of only a dozen customers, and seeing how quickly everyone's meals were coming out, Link had a feeling that they were used to having more people around this time.

The man drinking the funny-smelling drink looked at Link with the corner of his eye, and the hero found himself quickly looking away.

A minute or two later, the waitress came back with Link's milk, and he smiled gratefully. He stared at it for a moment before taking a sip.

It wasn't nearly as refreshing as all of the legends said it was, but it was surprisingly filling. Link took another drink. With a sigh, the hero finished off his meager 'meal'. He couldn't even remember the last time he had eaten something that wasn't provided by nature.

And, to top it off, his guide didn't seem to be answering him. He'd been hoping that 'Navi' could point out where, exactly, the pirates were staying, but… somehow, the pseudo-fairy appeared to be ignoring him. Well, as much as it unnerved him, he couldn't help but have a feeling that everything would be okay.

…So he hoped. He glanced at the clock, and although it said it was supposed to be late morning, the moon—half-hidden by the clouds and the downpour of rain—was still in the place it'd been since night-fall.

Without so much as a word, he put both the empty bottle and a red rupee on the counter. Link knew that it was more than enough to pay for his meal, but the waitress had been nice, and he figured that this place could use some more money. The table had been a little splintery, after all.

He walked out of the tiny café and away from the conjoined store downstairs. Once again in the rain, he let out a sigh as his hat blew off from the storm yet again. He chased it down in pure annoyance, and it came to rest at the underside of someone's boot.

"Looking for this?" a familiar voice said, and Link looked up in pleasant surprise. "Nice to see you again, my friend," Zunari said, ever cheerful. The flower-shop owner held out the boy's hat.

Link grinned and took it, shaking out the mud before putting it back atop his head.

"It's always nice to see you, Link," Zunari said, "But I must ask—what brings you here on this awful night?"

The hero just shrugged, still smiling, and Zunari smiled, though there was a tinge of disbelief behind it. "Well," the owner of Windfall Island's flower shop said, "I thank you for your kindness towards me when we first met. I do not think I would have gotten anywhere with my business, had you not given me my start…"

The young hero's face turned a bit pink, but it went unnoticed in the thickness of night. Link awkwardly scratched the back of his head, but Zunari seemed to pick up on his incapability to handle gratitude.

"No, no, I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable here, so I won't go into some big speech to thank you, but do know that I would help you with anything you need. Do you need anything, at the moment?" he asked, and Link brightened.

"Well," the young Outsetter said in a voice so quiet that he went almost unheard in the booming thunder. "Do you know where the Pirates are staying? I heard that they were staying on this island…"

Zunari seemed a bit startled to hear the boy talk—he had thought him mute for the longest time—and was quiet for a minute. But suddenly, he nodded. "Yes, yes! I heard that they were staying here, too… I think I saw some people silently walking over to the bomb shop. I don't know what they'd want there… the shop-keeper's prices are outrageous! But I am pretty sure that they are currently doing something in that building. Does that help?" the man said, and Link smiled widely, nodding enthusiastically.

And with that, the young hero was off in the general direction of the bomb shop, nearly tripping over quite a few pigs—who squealed loudly in protest—and ran up to the front door.

A note was attached to it, stating, in essence, that no one was wanted inside. Link glanced back to where Zunari was tending to his flowers and softly adjusting an umbrella that was being used to keep his flowers sheltered from the rain, and then the hero looked back to the door. It was locked, too, so there was no way in.

He sighed, and not knowing what else to do, sat down on the edge of the cliff to the side of the store, staring out to the distant, stormy horizon.

000

"_Someday, you will feel alone," Farore whispered softly, but there was something distinctly unsettling about the situation. "And it is then that you will find the two things that you care most about… and choose between them." _

_Light was everywhere, and there were whispers in a foreign but beautiful language. And yet… _

"_How will I know to choose?" Link asked, staring into the Goddess of Courage's wide, green eyes. "How will I know how, or when, or what?" _

_She looked back at him with a strange emotion in her eyes. "I do not know. We defer to the Fates, after all. They are the ones who will decide the details. But as for now… trust in Nayru for the wisdom to make the right choice, trust in Din to help you be strong enough to give up the other, and trust in me to give you the ability to trust your heart." _

"_That is all you can tell me?" he asked, almost angrily, and Farore stared back at him with equal intensity. _

"_Yes. Now go, back into the land where you came from." _

_Link turned and left the fairy spring, heading for the Castle. But the moment he left… a Redead jumped out of nowhere, and many more followed. It's shriek echoed across the land, contrasting with his own scream._

The Hero of Time bolted upright, eyes wide open and panting heavily. He seemed to bump into someone on the way up, and there was a startled "Mmf!" from beneath him. Groggily, he recalled Zelda coming in there and forcing him to rest…

Why hadn't he wanted to sleep? He wondered about it for a moment, then looked to his side. There, a screen that took up the entire wall, showed the distinct picture of a boy sitting at the ledge of a cliff, with his head resting in his hands.

"Hey! I thought you were going to sleep for a bit longer," Zelda said, more than a little concerned. Link looked back at her and smirked. Privately, the princess had a feeling that sleep had done wonders for his ego.

"Now, how could I do that when I have someone depending on me?" he asked, winking at her. She rolled her eyes and dusted off her dress, standing up and moving to the far side of the room, where he assumed a psychic door was being formed.

"I know, I know, 'The Hero Who Never Sleeps'. I've heard. But… I also heard that, after a while, he started to get super-grumpy and a little on the slow side while on his quest," she said with a half-smile.

"Yeah, well," he said, brushing off his dusty tunic and standing up, himself. "I suppose I deserved that. Still… I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't let me sleep for that long again. Farore knows—"

The Hero of Time looked startled for a moment, as if putting together bits and pieces from his dream, but he couldn't quite remember it all… Chills went up his spine, but he ignored the feeling of foreboding that he got at the mention of the Goddess of Courage's name. Link cleared his throat and continued.

"Farore knows what the kid might've gotten himself into while I was asleep."

Link glanced back to the screen. The boy seemed unable to hear anything, and he supposed that there was some magic of Zelda's being used to block the noise from the room.

The Princess of Hyrule grinned. "Oh, no, he seemed to be quite all right. A waitress flirted with him, though," she said with a wink, and Link looked at her quizzically.

"What, exactly happened…?" he asked after a minute, obviously disturbed.

"The poor kid didn't even realize it. She smiled at him every two seconds, and he was oblivious enough to think that she was just being nice." The princess obviously thought it very funny.

Link, however, appeared a bit disgruntled at this little tidbit. "Hm," was all he said, and Zelda rolled her eyes at him.

"Honestly, Hero," she said with a laugh, "It appears you're starting to get a tad bit overprotective of the boy." Link turned a bit red, and she considered her point proven. "I shouldn't be surprised, though. You always did tend to treat those younger than you like brothers or sisters. Someone that you've been watching this close for this long was bound to turn into a younger sibling to you."

The Hero of Time cleared his throat, but Zelda seemed too adamant to let the subject to. After a moment, he said, "Well… Yeah, I guess. Kid's a knucklehead, but he's my knucklehead."

The Princess of Hyrule laughed for the first time in what seemed to be months. Link rolled his eyes at her, wondering, as always, why she seemed to find him such a subject of amusement.

A moment passed, and Link looked back to the screen. The young hero was still sitting at the edge of the cliff in the pouring rain, and the Hero of Time seemed about ready to smack the little kid for staying out in the rain for so long. Zelda picked up on this and turned to go.

"I'll be back in a little while with some food. I don't think you've been eating enough, lately," she said, a look of disdain crossing her face as she took in how bony he'd become. Link shrugged, nodding a bit, and she seemed satisfied with that answer.

Zelda vanished, leaving the twenty-three year-old hero to his guiding.

000

'_Hey! Kid! Can you hear me?' _'Navi' asked, and the voice was so sudden that Link nearly fell off the cliff with surprise. He regained his bearings, though, and looked to the clouds in the sky.

"Yeah. Loud 'n clear. Although your signal's coming in kind of strange… might be because of hearing absolutely nothing for so long." the young hero said, obviously a little annoyed.

'_Sorry for disappearing on you… I needed to get some sleep. I don't think you would've appreciated my advice, much, when I started telling you to go hug the next monster you come in contact with,' _the pseudo-fairy explained, and Link seemed bashful for a little while.

"I'm sorry if I seemed upset…" the hero looked to the water and sand beneath him. "I didn't know that you needed to… you know, sleep and stuff. I wouldn't have been sad if you would've explained…" he mumbled. 'Navi' seemed to laugh.

'_Nah. It's cool, kid. I just don't like it when you're mad at me, 's all. I'll try to give you a heads up, next time.' _

It was quiet for a moment.

"So… I found out that the Pirates are somewhere inside the bomb shop…" he said quietly, looking to the building behind him. "But the door is locked, and there's a note from the store-owner that he doesn't want to be disturbed…" Link looked at his hands, then back up to the sky.

'…_Well, have you looked for another way in?' _the voice suggested, and Link reddened.

"I… um…"

'_So I'll assume that you haven't. Okay. Well, it's a good thing I'm here, then, because I just happen to know a great way inside.' _'Navi' seemed almost proud of this, and Link rolled his eyes. He just seemed silly, really…

"Oh, really?" Link asked, smirking at his invisible guide. "Do tell."

'_Have you checked around the back? I hear shops, these days, have this odd little ventilation system—you see, it involves this hole in the back, no bigger than what a child would be able to crawl through…' _

"You're kidding me," the child-sized hero said in disbelief. "How did I miss that?"

'_Because you don't have amazingly cool observational powers?' _'Navi' suggested, and Link rolled his eyes.

"Oh…," the Hero of Winds said with a crooked smile. "So this is about that whole, 'I can see everything around you' thing, isn't it?"

'_Um…' _the pseudo-fairy said, and Link could just _see_ him looking from side to side, trying to look inconspicuous. _'Well, not all about that thing… It… I'm a good guesser, too.'_

"Mm-hmm," Link said, still smirking. "Methinks you have a bit of an ego problem, here."

'_Oh, like you're one to talk, Mr. 'Oh, Don't Worry, I'll Be Fine, It's Only Deep Cuts From a Poisonous Flower!'' _the guide said, and the Outsetter laughed out loud.

"Names aren't that long," Link chided his mentor, and 'Navi' sighed in exasperation.

'_I was going for exaggerated humor. Since you laughed, I assume it worked.' _

Link blinked at the sudden big words. "Since when do you talk fancy?" he asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

'_Oh, please. Like I didn't say, 'ventilation,' and 'observation,' not two minutes ago,' _'Navi' reminded the boy, and Link shrugged.

"Yes, but you also have a slight country accent and tend to slur your words. Just saying," the Outsetter said.

'…_Touche…' _'Navi' said, and Link grinned. The following silence seemed only to be broken by Link's breathing and the roar of the thunder.

"Anyways…" the Outsetter said after what must've been a minute or two. "Where, exactly, would one find such an entrance?"

'Navi' laughed. _'Ever heard the phrase, 'back entrance'?' _

Link slammed the palm of his hand against his forehead. "You did not just make that pun."

'_I did, and I'll do it again.' _The pseudo-fairy was quiet for a moment, as if considering something. _'And I thought that you didn't know what a literary term was…'_

The hero looked confused. "That's a literary term? Huh. My grandma called the jokes I made a lot 'puns'… I guess I picked it up from her." He shrugged, then, and stood up, brushing some dirt off of his pants.

'_Hm,' _the voice mumbled, but dropped the subject.

Link jumped from one ledge to the other, and barely caught the side of it. He pulled himself up slowly, and ignored the laughs of his supposed guide.

"It wasn't," he groaned, blowing on his scraped hands, "_that_ funny, 'Navi'."

'_It was,' _the pseudo-fairy insisted, and Link ignored the continual laughter. _'Now climb up the ivy around the corner. It should take you straight up to…'_

But the hero had already climbed it, and was staring into the hole.

"Wow. This thing is tiny," he mumbled, and he could just _see_ 'Navi' rolling his eyes.

'_Like I said—Child Sized. Now get inside of it…' _

Link looked uneasy for a moment, and this time, it was the pseudo-fairy that slapped his hand to his forehead.

'_You've got to be kidding me. You're claustrophobic?' _the guide asked, and Link crossed his arms indignantly.

"I never said that," the hero protested, but looked infinitely nervous at having to still crawl into the tiny hole, and it only seemed to prove 'Navi's' point.

'_You're going in there, or Nayru help me, I will personally come over there and force you in!' _

Link glared daggers at the invisible figure who he pictured to be standing somewhere above him. It was an incredibly hard thing to do, in all actuality, especially since he had no clue where, exactly, the voice was coming from. Really, it seemed to come from behind his skull, but since he didn't want to try to roll his eyes to the back of his head, it was easier to imagine the voice coming from the outside.

"I'm not scared," the hero puffed his chest out, "I just don't think it's such a good idea…"

'_You didn't seem so scared about it a minute ago,' _the pseudo-fairy said blandly.

"Well, I hadn't seen it then," Link whined.

It was quiet for a moment, then 'Navi' sighed in exasperation.

'_Look. Kid. You've done how much in the last few weeks? Oh, that's right: You braved the forest on your island to save some girl you didn't even know, with nothing to protect you but a sword. You didn't even have a shield, then! And not long after that, you go to some Goddesses-Forsaken Fortress to rescue your little sister, without your sword! And then, after getting flung across the map by a bird, you meet a talking boat who, somehow, manages to convince you to start gathering the Pearls of the Goddesses, and journey inside of a volcano for the first one. In that volcano, you have to fight countless monsters with nothing but a sword, a shield and a grappling hook that you couldn't even figure out until towards the end! And after you do figure it out, you decide to take on some monster that's messing with a dragon's tail, and…._

'_And then, there's last week,' _the pseudo-fairy continued, almost breathless in the explanation, _'where you journeyed inside of some blasted forest and decide to save some random little girl… er, Korok, who managed to get herself… himself… into trouble, and defeat just about every monster that gets in your way, learn how to use a boomerang, and kill a giant Venus Fly Trap that had ensnared Sar… Makar!' _

Link seemed not to notice his guide's many name slip-ups with Makar, but let the rest of the message sink in. He appeared lost in thought for a moment, staring in depth at the clouds to the horizon.

After a little while, though, he looked back to where he imagined the voice to be coming from.

"…'Goddesses-Forsaken Fortress?'" the boy asked, looking far too forcibly somber to be truly serious. "Is that some kind of pun?"

'Navi', however, didn't find it too funny.

'…_I give you a giant 'You can do it!' speech, and the only thing you seem to take in is… a pun? Really?' _The pseudo-fairy seemed to be truly lost at this. Really, he didn't seem to know whether he wanted to laugh out loud or be totally furious.

A moment passed, and 'Navi' seemed to realize something.

'_Wait a minute…' _he said, _'You're just doing this to stall, aren't you?' _

Even in the rain, Link seemed to be sweating bullets.

"Um… no?"

'_Crawl through that blasted tunnel, or I swear I'll strap you to a Goron's back and challenge it to beat its newest speed record.' _

The Hero of Winds had no clue what a Goron was, much less why it would have a speed record, but there was a distinctly threatening edge to his guide's voice, and Link decided that he might live longer if he obeyed, just this once.

The tunnel was just as small and cramped as it looked from the outside—indeed, it may have even been smaller. And Link was far more uneasy than he let on; quite frankly, on the inside, he was dying just a little. On the outside, however…

"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you so, _so_ much, right now…." He said, the last part added on as he walked through a spider web.

'_At least I don't tell you to eat your green vegetables,' _'Navi' said with a neutral voice.

"…What?" Link asked, stopping for a moment. He felt a bug crawl up his pants and very, very quickly moved forward again.

'…_Nevermind. I'll tell you later. Right now, however,' _the guide said, and Link looked forward.

The hero almost cried tears of joy. "A light! A light means a way in! YES!"

'_Shut up, I hear voices. Don't talk, just listen, kid.' _

Link crawled through the last little bit of the tunnel, and heard the voice of Mako—curiosity overtaking him, the Outsetter leaned slightly over the side to see what was going on.

"Look, don't be mad at us. It's not our fault that we absolutely gotta have bombs to get the treasure we're after," said the pirate wearing glasses. He seemed to be talking to the bomb-shop owner, who was currently tied up and gagged.

"How about you just think of it as payback for the nasty little monopoly you've been running around here, yeah?" he added with a smirk as the man was shoved against the wall. "So I bet you're thinking it was foolhardy to ask pirates to pay such an outrageous price, huh?"

He stopped talking as if he was actually expecting an answer. Then he smirked and continued. "Yup. I bet you are."

Turning to Gonzo, the pirate that was always around Tetra, he said, "…You know, Gonzo, I still can't get over that bit of fast-talking you pulled to get that information out of the postman!"

The big, burly pirate didn't seem to understand him at first. "Huh? …Oh! Oh, yeah! That was smooth! I tell you, the minute I set my eyes on that Link, I just knew he was hiding something back at Outset, yeah?"

With a self-satisfied smirk, he put his nose slightly in the air and continued to speak. "So when I saw that postman, I just pretended like I was all worried about the kid and stuff… And presto! He spills the beans!"

Mako smiled. "Good work, Gonzo. Really! Just top notch! It's funny, though… I'm thinking this is maybe the first time you've shown such wit… such cunning…" With a look off to the side, he continued. "…You know, with your cunning and Miss Tetra's smarts… if you two got married and had a kid… That kid would be the greatest pirate to ever sail the seas! Yup! The greatest!"

Gonzo looked startled, and blushed furiously at Mako. "You… you idiot! Keep your mouth shut, yeah? Don't be so stupid!" The pirate turned to the captain, still blushing bright red. "Miss Tetra! Are you listening to this nitwit? Can't you dock him some pay or something?"

Link looked for Tetra, and finally found her slouching against the wall, looking distant and rather upset. She just… didn't seem like Tetra, the fierce Pirate Captain, the terror of the sea.

And she definitely didn't look like the over-confident, ambitious girl who launched him from a cannon into the Forsaken Fortress, then helped him along by using an ancient stone to communicate.

She just looked… almost defeated, really.

"Quit goofing off, both of you," Tetra said, crossing her arms and finally looking at the two arguing pirates. "Keep your childish jokes to yourselves and get those bombs back to the ship. The second you're done loading them up, we're setting sail for Outset Island."

The room was quiet for a moment, then Gonzo's eyes widened as he finally realized what she meant.

"Whaaaaaaaaat?" he exclaimed, looking distraught. "Miss! We have to leave immediately? But it's been so long since we've been on shore! We need to fill our bellies with some good eating, yeah? How about we grub tonight and shove off tomorrow morning instead?"

Tetra sent him a glare so harsh that he backpedaled over every word he'd said.

"I mean… Uh, I-I'm fine either way, of course! Whatever you say is fine, Miss, is what I mean to say!"

'_Wow. What a sissy,' _'Navi' whispered to Link, and the hero ignored him, leaning forward to catch more of the conversation. Gonzo was actually whimpering, now… and appeared to have barely retained enough dignity not to start groveling.

"…It's just that, the boys were so excited to come to town, yeah? And I can't help but think it would be awful hard on them to leave so soon without a proper layover." He paused, then seemed to get little bolder. "So, what say we set sail tomorrow, yeah? What do you say, Miss? That treasure isn't going anywhere!"

Gonzo turned to some of the others, who were carrying rather heavy barrels that Link could only assume held bombs. "You're with me, right, boys? Who's for a night of fun?"

It was quiet. No one dared to even breathe.

Tetra glared at her crew, then shook her head slowly. "You're all fools, do you know that? You saw that demolished island! You saw the senseless destruction… We have to hurry on to Outset, or the same thing could happen there!"

Mako slowly walked up to her, book in hand, and tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Huh?" he asked, clearly not understanding. "Not to be disrespectful, but by the sound of things, you're worried more about that island than the treasure, Miss…"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Tetra snapped, but continued in a small voice. "I want, you know… the treasure…"

And, in that moment, she decided that she couldn't even stand to look her crew members in the eye. She looked up, and by sheer bad luck, spotted Link.

The hero immediately crawled away, hoping and praying that her wink meant something good for him, but he didn't have any time to put together an explanation, because he was too far against the wall to see anything going on, and suddenly Tetra's voice was booming through the room again.

"All right! Fine! Have it your way! We can leave tomorrow, you big babies," she said, walking to the door. "But we're setting sail at first light, so no sleeping in! Understood?"

The crew let out a loud cheer and followed their captain out.

It didn't take long for them to all clear out, and soon only Gonzo and Mako remained.

"…Say, brother, do you remember the password?" the bookworm pirate said in a small voice that Link only just managed to hear.

"Mako! Are you serious? You forgot already? You're so useless." Gonzo sighed, then answered the smaller pirate anyways. "Today's password is Crow's Nest, yeah? Remember?"

Mako nodded feverishly, and together, the two pirates exited, each carrying a heavy barrel of bombs.

The door slamming was Link's signal to jump down from his perch.

'_Well. That was certainly informative,' _'Navi' said, and Link nodded his agreement.

"Yeah… it was almost weird how we got here just in time to hear all of that, you know?"

'_I know what you mean… Sometimes it's creepy how lucky heroes always get.' _

Link felt a sudden shiver go down his spine, and on his way out the door, he passed the owner of the store.

'_Aren't you going to untie him?' _the voice asked, and Link shrugged.

"His prices were too high. Someone else can deal with him."

'_Yeah, but… what if no one comes in here for, like, a week? From what I hear, this shop doesn't get much business… mainly because of the high prices.' _

"But… but… I just…" Link whined, stumbling over his words.

'_No buts, mister. You untie that guy, right now!' _

The young hero sighed deeply, and used his sword to cut the ropes binding the store owner. He left the duct-tape over his mouth, though, seeing as he thought the quiet an improvement. Plus, it covered the angry scowl that the man always wore.

Link walked through the door, and went straight for the pirate ship.

After all, he mused, it was sheer luck that he overhead the password, so why shouldn't he put that luck to good use?

XXX

**Ah-ha-ha. There WILL be Link and Tetra in this story, but so mild that I'm sure you guys won't mind. I'm not much for romance stories, and, well, I've already decided that this will mainly be adventure, anyways. **

**The next few chapters won't contain Link getting himself hurt too awfully, so… enjoy. (I know I have a bad habit of that, and I'm trying to cut back.) **

**And who knows? If you Read and Review, he might go uninjured for longer! :D **


	10. Inside the Pirate Ship

**Hey, again! It's me, SamSal. New chapter… and I just updated the summary. It kind of failed before, but hopefully this will be more attention grabbing. **

**Disclaimer: Believe me, if I owned Legend of Zelda, it would've been more like a movie than a video-game. WAAAY too many cut-scenes, and every time he lost a heart, whoever was the 'fairy' of the game would totally freak out. Hahaha… ha… Yeah. Need more proof that I don't, under any circumstances, own this amazing series? **

XXX

Link snuck into the pirate ship in the cover of night, taking care not to slip on the wet floor. The rain seemed to have made everything slick, after all…

He heard a small noise and was suddenly up against the wall. Peering cautiously around the corner, he spared a glance at the open deck of the ship.

'_Stop trying to be a ninja. You're sneaking onto a pirate ship, and if they think you're a pirate, you'll be burned at the stake.'_

The young hero muttered something inaudible and stopped sidling the wall. "But I wanted to jump down from the Crow's Nest…"

'_Right. Well, as much as I would've loved cleaning up your remains, I think it'd be best if you didn't try jumping from anything that high up.'_

"If I rolled out of the way, I would've been fine…" Link grumbled, pouting as he crossed his arms.

'_What, exactly, is your definition of fine?' _ 'Navi' asked, and the hero could just _see_ the eyeroll attached to this.

"…Still breathing? Still capable of moving and/or reproducing sometime in the future?"

It was quiet for a moment.

'…_You're, like, eleven. Where did you even learn…?' _the guide asked with disgust, and Link snickered at the pseudo-fairy.

"You, my guide, are squeamish? That's just…" the hero couldn't finish his sentence due to the loud laughter constricting his breathing. "That's just weird, man." He wiped a tear from his eye, then leaned against the wall.

'_Oh, shut it. Just… go downstairs now, kid. You remember the password, right?' _

Link noticed the sudden topic-change, but decided to let it go. "Yeah, yeah. 'Crow's Nest'."

The hero walked over to the door, looking cautiously into the door-hole—and finding to his dismay that he could see nothing—when suddenly a voice spoke up.

"What's the password?" Niko asked with a huff, and Link sighed.

"Crow's nest," the hero said—hating that he had to speak in the first place, but optimistic since the pirate wouldn't know it was him, since he'd never spoken before then—but for some reason… the door didn't open.

"That's not it. What's the password?" Niko asked angrily, and Link looked to the sky for assistance.

'_Beats me… I was pretty sure you said it correctly…'_

"Crow's nest," Link repeated, but the door stayed closed.

"I'll ask you one last time, punk. What's the password? And this time, say it right, or else you're not getting in here."

The Outsetter gulped, cleared his throat, and spoke up.

"Crow's Nest?" he squeaked, somehow managing to capitalize 'Nest', and the door burst open.

"It's about time, kid," Niko said, his eyes half lidded with a supercilious look on his face. It was because of this that he didn't exactly know who he was addressing for a moment or two.

"Oh! Link! My old swabbie… Link!" the young pirate said, half to himself. "So… you're alive?"

The hero thought that this was a ridiculous question, but nodded anyways.

"All the other pirates said that you got done in by that bird-monster in the Forsaken Fortress, so I thought…" Niko gulped, looking at anything but Link's face, "Nevermind what I thought! You're alive!"

The pirate smiled widely for a second, then snapped his fingers as if he'd just had a brilliant idea.

"Oh! I get it now! You came back because you missed me so much!"

'No,' the hero wanted to say, 'I came back to steal the treasure that you guys had just gotten… I couldn't care less about your awkward emotional attachment to me' but he couldn't bring himself to be that cruel.

"I had no idea you wanted to be my swabbie so badly!" Niko said before Link could say anything in protest. "I see, I see…" the pirate continued, though it was clear that he really didn't see.

"Well, after you left, I went back to being the bottom rung on the ladder…"

Link mentally groaned, having a sudden feeling that he was going to have to listen to the pirate's sob story for the next five minutes.

"Which is why I'm stuck here while everyone else is in town having fun and eating and stuff… But… I guess being so worshiped by my swabbie ought to cheer me up! All right! Why don't we set you to your next test, huh? This one is harder than the last! Good luck! You'll need it, swabbie."

And with that, Niko jumped onto a button on the other side of the platform.

"As you can see, there are lanterns hanging up across the room. Well, what you have to do is jump from lantern to lantern. Kind of like your last test, eh, swabbie? Heh. But this time, there aren't any platforms for you to rest on. You gotta use them like vines!"

Somehow, though he didn't touch any of the ropes, Niko ended up on the far side of the room.

"And this time, there's a gate. So don't try to pull any funny business about getting there in the nick of time and expecting me to let your pitiful time slide."

Link briefly wondered why the pirate was insulting his time—he'd counted thirty extra seconds until the platforms went down last time he did this 'challenge'.

"Begin!"

The hero rolled his eyes, and reset the switch. From there, he jumped to the first rope. It was surprisingly easy, though he had a feeling that his hands would quickly get raw from the harsh rope the lantern was strung from.

'_Careful, kid,'_ the pseudo-fairy said, and Link instantly recognized the 'be careful' tone. _'These ropes sway.' _

"Please," the Outsetter whispered, "Like I don't know exactly what I'm doing."

It was then that he missed the lantern by just a smidgeon, and he dropped onto the ground, landing hard on his rear.

"…Not a word," Link said with a groan, rubbing his sore hind-quarters.

'_Uh-huh…' _'Navi' mocked, _'Does 'I told you so' count as one word, or four?' _

"Shhhh!" the hero hissed, looking suspiciously at Niko, who was giving him a weird look. "Do you want me to look like I'm crazy?"

'_I'm wondering why this guy's opinion matters so much to you…'_

"It doesn't!" the Outsetter whispered as loud as he dared, looking anywhere except for the direction of the pirate… who was standing at the edge of the platform, giving him a worried look.

"Hoy! Swabbie! You alright down there?" Niko asked, peering down at the hero, who was very, very slowly getting to his feet.

Link gave him a thumbs up before walking slowly towards the ladder.

'_Wait…' _'Navi' said after a moment. _'Didn't you list 'Still able to reproduce' on your 'I'm okay' list?' _

"…Shut up."

…

Three more unsuccessful tries later, Link practically crawled to the ladder.

'_Are you sure you shouldn't take a break for a minute or two?' _the guide asked his charge, and the hero waved the suggestion off.

"I'm good. Just tired, 's all," Link muttered, barely moving his lips as he went over to the switch yet again. "Last time I almost made it to the last rope… Just gotta be more careful, you know?"

'_Wow. You, saying that you'll be more careful? I want to get this in writing!' _'Navi' said sarcastically, and Link rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, well…" the hero trailed off, getting focused again.

He jumped to the first rope, then the second, but paused as the third swung back and forth before leaping to it. Link stilled the rope, and managed to get it swinging in the right direction; even so, he almost didn't make the fourth rope. Link had a feeling that the rope burn that he got would hurt more later, but right now…

The fifth rope was difficult, especially with his hands being so raw, but he was determined not to fall. He made it, just barely, and clung to the rope for longer than he should've.

'_Time's almost up, kid. You've got just one more rope to do… then you're done. Think you can do it?'_

"No problem," Link said with more conviction than he'd intended.

He leapt to the sixth one, and there was a wonderful feeling of satisfaction as he jumped from that last rope to the platform.

The Outsetter strode casually into the small room, a smug smile on his face. Niko stared at him in shock for a moment, and then spoke.

"What?" the pirate practically shouted, "You've gotta be… You did it already? You're… You're incredible!"

To himself, though, Niko seemed worried. He talked in a small voice, but Link could hear him nonetheless. "This isn't good… I've never even passed this test… How could he do it so quickly? And make it look so easy? And if I give this to him, everyone will know for sure… Oh, I'll be so busted…"

The pirate coughed once, and then seemed to come to a decision. "Uh… okay! You're the best swabbie of all time! So… I guess I'll just give you the bombs! Go on! Take 'em! Just… just don't tell anyone, okay? I'm serious! Really serious! Okay? Okay?"

Niko walked out slowly, with a number of suspicious glances directed at Link. The hero, however, couldn't care less and walked over to the treasure chest. With a satisfied smile, he lifted the lid, and looked inside.

'_Bombs! Yes!' _the pseudo-fairy shouted excitedly, and privately, Link thought that his mentor was a little too happy about the explosives. Farore knew what this guy would do at a demolition site…

Suddenly, a new voice entered the picture.

"**That's mighty courageous of you… trying to steal treasure from pirates**," it said, and Link placed the speaker almost immediately.

"Tetra?" he whispered, looking around for the captain. He didn't see her, though, and pulled out the blue stone from his pocket.

"**I suppose I should be shocked… but I'm more amazed that you managed to survive after being tossed out of that tower… From the look on your face, I have to guess you haven't saved your sister yet, huh?**"

'_Wow. That was nice of her to point out,' _'Navi' said with a huff, and Link rolled his eyes. He really wasn't sure when this had turned into a three-way conversation…

"**You don't give things much thought, do you? You just rush in, never thinking how badly things could go for you. Just like now…**" she said with what he perceived to be a glare, "**The only reason you got what you did was because we left a simple-minded little rat like Niko behind to look after things. No one else would've parted with our treasure so easily, I assure you.**"

Link looked back to Niko, and from the indignant look on the pirates face, he assumed that the buck-toothed pirate could hear what Tetra was saying. The hero gave Niko a sympathetic smile before looking back to the stone.

"**And just how do you intend to use those bombs, anyway? Don't tell me you're going after Jabun's treasure, too…"**

'_As a matter of fact,' _the pseudo-fairy said, _'We are. You have a problem with that?' _

"**Who said that**?" Tetra asked suddenly, and Link gave the stone a wide-eyed stare.

'_Oh, Farore's Courage…' _'Navi' said, and the hero could hear the shock in his guide's voice.

"**Link**?" the pirate-captain asked, distinctly suspicious. "**Was that you, just now**?"

'_Um… yes,' _the wannabe-fairy said very quickly.

"**Whatever, it doesn't matter**," Tetra said indifferently, and both Link and his guide breathed a sigh of relief. "**Anyways, like I was saying. Right now, Jabun is hiding in a cave at the back of the island you were born on. But, unfortunately, the entrance is blocked by a giant stone doorway. You can't get in without breaking down the door. We're going to relax in town and eat our fill of whatever this town has to offer, but we'll be leaving for Outset first thing in the morning**."

The hero gave nothing in particular a disbelieving smile.

"**If you manage to find Jabun tonight, then I guess you win**."

Link was about to express his thanks to her, but she started to talk very quickly again. "**But if you take too long, we'll come sailing right by you tomorrow morning! And believe me, you didn't get all of our bombs. You'd better be quick, kid!**"

And just like that, her voice was gone.

'_Well. Wasn't that nice of her,' _'Navi' said with what Link guessed to be an eye-roll. _'Allowing us to go after a treasure that we were going to get, anyways. So charitable…'_

"Knock it off, will you?" the hero hissed, quickly running out of the exit—ignoring Niko's pathetic good-bye wave—and back into the 'challenge' room.

Stumbling up the latter, he managed to slide out of the doorway.

'_Don't give me that. You're just sore because she didn't see you in person.'_

Link glared at nothing in particular. "Well, you're just acting all over-bearing 'cause you want me to focus, focus, _focus_ on hero stuff, and you don't want me to actually date a girl!"

'_One, you're both, like, eleven. Two, she's a manipulating pirate. What about her personality did you not get?'_

"Didn't you hear what she said back at the Bomb Shop? She wanted to get the treasure so that Outset wouldn't be destroyed! Sounds to me like she genuinely cares for more than just treasure!" Link whispered angrily to his guide.

'_Was this before or after she raided the Bomb Shop and tied up its owner?'_

The young hero was quiet for a moment. Then, he looked to the roof of the small room. "She didn't do all of that. That was her crew, and you know it."

'_Right. So, in your version of this story, she must've just stood by for all of it, then. That makes it so much better! Face it, Link,'_ the pseudo-fairy said in a low voice, _'Even if she's not a bully who picks on the weak, she's no better than those that stand around, watching as the bad guys take over.'_

"J-Just stop, okay? You don't know her!" The Outsetter looked closer to tears, and his guide's tone was a lot gentler when he spoke up again.

'…_Do you?'_

"…Well, either way," Link said glumly, trying not to draw attention to the fact that he'd just dodged answering that, "Thanks to her, I can finally get what I came for, and get that last pearl. You should be happy for me!"

'_Yeah, well,' _'Navi' said, hesitantly accepting the subject change, _'I just don't want you turning into one of those people who start doing heroic things just to impress a girl. People who do that are fake and false and… and are a disgrace to real heroes. Helping others should be about protecting the people of the world, not for show.' _

"Yes, mother," Link huffed, and suddenly grinned to himself when he saw Tetra's room…

…Unguarded.

'_No! Nonononononono! N-O! What part about what I'm saying do you not understand, kid?' _the pseudo-fairy was saying very quickly, but Link ignored him and cautiously entered the captain's cabin.

"I'm just exploring, 's all…" the young hero said with a strange smile, already inside and examining the walls of the room.

'_Dude. Come on. You're, like, eleven. This is wrong on so many levels! You're sneaking into a girl your age's room!' _

"Yes, yes I am," Link said with a satisfied smile. "Oooh, what's this?" he asked suddenly, examining the picture hanging beside her bed.

"Is that…?"

'_Um…'_

"That's the Hero of Time!" Link exclaimed, jumping onto the bed in excitement. "Wow! I didn't know that she liked the old stories… she didn't really seem the type!"

'_Kid, I really think you should get out of there, now…' _

The hero picked up on the sudden anxiousness in his guide's voice. "Why? What's the matter?"

'_It just doesn't really seem right,' _'Navi' said with noticeable apprehension. Link tilted his head to the side.

"…Well, if you say so…"

The young hero gave a long-suffering sigh at Tetra's room before exiting and going back upstairs.

…

The rain was stinging on his raw hands, but he didn't mind so much. The bomb-bag was lighter than he thought it'd be, but it was still rather heavy and made his belt droop at the weight of it. Link immediately decided that he wouldn't be able to carry too many more items, for fear of not being able to move fast enough while holding all of them.

His guide seemed to pick up on this.

'_You should really see if a fairy can help you with that,' _'Navi' suggested, but Link just looked at him—or where he thought that his guide would be if he were there with him—in wonder.

"You mean there are fairies still around? That's so cool!"

'_Well… they are immortal,' _his guide said with a noncommittal tone. _'But I don't really know where they'd be. In my time as… um, the Hero of Time's… secondary… guide, they were mainly on mountaintops. And since they weren't really fond of relocating much, I think you'll be able to find almost all of them on the islands. There might be one or two underwater, though…' _

"Hm," was all the young hero said, though it was easy to tell that he was excited.

Though Link was reminded—one again—of his guide's seemingly endless knowledge of this world, he didn't ask why his guide knew how so many things worked, and he certainly didn't ever ask why 'Navi' had to give him a fake name, or why he decided to mentor him in the first name, or always tripped over Makar's name…

'_Ahem,' _the pseudo-fairy cleared his throat. _'I believe it's time to get you to your ship, ya pirate wannabe.' _

"Yeah, yeah," Link grumbled, slipping and sliding across the deck until he came across a way out. He launched himself into the ocean with an ungraceful _SPLASH!_ and fleetingly wondered why his bombs hadn't gone off at the impact of the water.

But he wasn't ever one to argue with luck, so he shrugged and struggled against the unusually strong current to get to his boat.

000

The Hero of Time wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and smiled in relief that he'd actually managed to protect the kid from the kid's own carelessness. He had no real idea how he'd managed to do it, but his arms had stretched out towards the screen, and nothing… had happened…

Zelda suddenly poofed into the room, and Link looked to her in surprise. She was holding out a steaming bowl of soup, and the hero felt his stomach roar its approval.

"So, everything going okay?" the princess asked with a smirk, and Link leaned backwards, putting his arms behind his head in his best display of arrogance.

"Yup," Link said, grinning, "The kid just got some bombs. Now he'll be able to get the last pearl. I think it's Nayru's…"

The hero gave a noncommittal shrug, and claimed the bowl that was being held out to him. "Thanks," he mumbled, breathing in the steam.

"I feel…" Zelda said cautiously, "I feel some magic here. Did anything… unusual happen?"

Link opened one eye that he hadn't been aware of closing. "Do you mean aside from protecting the kid from a random explosion that would've gone off, had I not intervened?"

The princess's face suddenly went pale. "You did what?"

The Hero of Time studied her for a moment, and then cleared his throat. "Um… is that a bad thing?"

"No, no, of course not," she backpedaled, "It's just… I didn't think that you could…"

She got up to leave, but he grabbed her by the arm.

"Explain," he said gruffly, staring her in the eyes. "I need to know what's going on."

Zelda looked anywhere but his face, and let out a sigh. "I don't really know, myself. I've only heard of one guide that's ever been able to maintain a physical presence from a distance, but even then she was visible. Her name was Midna, and she wasn't even from this timeline…"

The princess trailed off, and Link stiffened at her mention of the split timeline.

"It wasn't my fault," the hero said quietly.

"I never said that it was," Zelda snapped, finally looking back at him. "I just… I don't know how you did this. But I will definitely ask the Council tonight."

It was quiet a moment.

"…You speak with the Council of the Realm of Heroes often?" the Hero of Time asked, his voice carefully neutral.

"Not as often as you're implying, no," the princess said, irritatedly.

"I wasn't implying a specific amount…" He blinked at her. "Wait. Did you just read my mind?"

Zelda rolled her eyes. "You know I can't help it sometimes."

"Yeah, but…" he whined, taking a bite of soup. "It's still a little bit…" Link trailed off, not sure how to word it delicately.

"'An invasion of personal space'?" she suggested, much to his chagrin.

"You did it again."

She was quiet for a moment, and then laughed.

"That was actually a guess, so I'm officially super-smart _and_ a mind-reader!" And Link decided that he didn't much like her tone of voice. It was too… playful? No, not playful, he thought, just… suggestive.

"For the last time, I do not sound suggestive!"

"…Stop doing that, Zelda," the hero said with a laugh. "It's seriously weirding me out."

She chuckled with him, and then gave him a quick hug before she got up to go again. "Quiet, you. You should be eating, or maybe paying attention to what your kid's doing."

The Hero of Time glanced to the screen, and his eyes widened. "Oh, Farore… you can't be serious…" he mumbled, and Zelda laughed harder.

"I think he is."

"But…"

"I'll let you work this out, hon," the princess said with a wink, before vanishing through the wall.

Link forced himself to calmly eat his soup, all the while wondering what could have possibly given the Hero of Winds the 'great idea' to use the blanket as a cape and use the Wind Waker as some kind of weird musical device.

000

'_What are you doing?' _his guide asked, laughing loudly at the boy, who suddenly felt a bit awkward.

"Um… Directing a symphony of the winds?" Link suggested lamely, trying to ignore the irritated groan from the other side of the conversation.

"Did you say something, boy?" the King of Red Lions asked, turning his neck around to face the boy. "It's hard to hear with all this thunder out…"

Link shook his head, trying to convince the boat that, in fact, he was not just talking to a magical guide who seemed to be speaking from inside of his head.

'_Oy, vei…' _'Navi' said with a chuckle. _'Maybe you should use that blanket like it's supposed to be used, and go to sleep or something. Farore knows you need it if you're tired enough to do… that…' _

The young hero crossed his arms indignantly. "No," he whispered, "I'm not tired… and I really, really should get the last pearl before even considering sleep."

His guide didn't seem to have anything to say to that, so Link continued.

"Besides, I need to keep vigilant over the seas… those sharks are coming up faster and faster, and something tells me that I'll have to jump over them every two or three minutes, anyways."

'_And there's also the small fact that last time you tried to sleep on the boat, your pride was mortally wounded.' _

The Outsetter looked a bit confused, so the pseudo-fairy gave a long-suffering sigh and elaborated.

'_You don't remember waking up to a nose full of saltwater? Or did you just block it out?' _

"…Shush," Link said, crossing his arms, and leaning back in the boat. Really, it was hard to sleep with the rain pelting him, anyways.

…

Despite what Link originally thought, the seas were surprisingly tame for the remainder of the trip. Granted, there were a few predators around islands, but the open seas were rather calm. Still, the hero was vigilant and refused to leave himself vulnerable. He of all people knew how heavy of a sleeper he was…

They arrived at Outset several hours later, and the hero yawned, stretched, and blinked in surprise when the King of Red Lions docked at the port instead of continuing to the other side of the island.

"Have you noticed, Link? Morning has not broken since we arrived at Great-fish Isle—the land that was so ravaged by monsters. It is as if time itself is frozen… Perhaps this is the curse that Valoo spoke of?"

Link fought back the urge to roll his eyes. Yes, he'd noticed. Why the boat was choosing _now_ of all times, when he could be getting the pearl, to tell him this, he hadn't a clue.

"Whatever the reason, if this night does not end, then we need not worry about the pirates overtaking us. In fact, it might not be a bad idea for you to visit your hometown and family again after such a long time away. We can speak with Jabun after you do."

The young Outsetter blinked at the boat for a moment. Could he really just postpone his mission like that…?

'_Do it,' _'Navi' ordered. _'You'll probably end up regretting it if you don't. Besides… your grandma probably misses you.' _

Well, Link decided, he couldn't argue with that logic. And if his grandma was anything like she had always been, she'd probably worried herself sick.

The hero recoiled at the thought, and found himself sprinting towards his home.

He rushed though the front door and searched frantically for his caretaker, only to find her asleep by the fire. Link breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to her, but she sounded… strange.

The old woman appeared to be calling for both Aryll and Link, and the word 'safe' came out over and over again. The young hero looked at her with more worry than he ever recalled feeling for his grandma.

"I'm right here…" he said, gently taking her hand. "I'm home again, grandma…"

She didn't even flinch.

XXX

**DUN-DUN-DUN-DUNNNNN…**

**Hah. No, I kid, I kid. But if you really look at certain things, the plot will become way obvious. And before you ask questions about Tetra hearing Ocarina of Time Link… re-read the passage with Zelda and OoT Link again, and remind yourself not to spoil any of the story for those of you who haven't played this amazing game yet. **

**As always, Reviews are WAY appreciated. (And since I said, "Hey, if you Read and Review, Link won't get hurt this chapter" and only one person reviewed… well, he got a minor rope-burn in this, and as far as I'm concerned, is steadily developing a cold from staying out in the hurricane weather for so long. So… um, yeah. Read and Review, or I'll upload various one-shots of Link managing to hurt himself in new and inventive ways! **

**(Reader: Not much of a threat, since she does this way too much, anyways…)**

**Quiet, you!**

**EDIT: Hey! Guys! I have a beta-reader now! Her name is Lady Fai, and she will be proofreading my chapters. As you can see, less errors already! Give her a hand, folks, and check out her profile!**


	11. Silver Linings of Thick Clouds

**Ooh! Ooh! Look! A disclaimer! Quick, catch it in your Pokeball before it runs away!**

**Why no, I don't happen to own Nintendo or Legend of Zelda (Ocarina of Time **_**or**_** Wind Waker). Therefore, I don't own any of the characters in this story. …If I did, I have a feeling that more friendships would be explored…**

**XXX**

The Hero of Time drew in a sharp breath, nearly choking on his soup. _That _had been unexpected. He'd never really had anyone waiting back home that would've been worried about him, with the exception of Saria, but he had always been able to talk to her through the Ocarina…

His old Fairy Ocarina…

Link let a glance stray to the leather-bound book that retold all of his adventures. He still remembered the feel of Saria's gift; he still remembered her song.

The hero let out an uneasy breath and looked back to the screen. The boy was pale and looked just about ready to collapse, but for once, it wasn't from physical exhaustion. No, this time… this time, it was pure fear.

And the Hero of Time couldn't really blame him.

…

It was at that moment that Zelda appeared through the wall.

"Are you done with that bowl—?" she asked, her gaze darting from his face to the screen behind him. "Oh…"

"Yeah," the hero said, closing his eyes in pity. "The kid looks just about heartbroken…"

The princess nodded. "He has a right. She's his grandma, after all… and she looked after him since he was, what? Four? Maybe younger?"

Link was quiet for a moment, half-lost in thought. After a moment, though, he opened his eyes and looked towards Zelda. "Three and a half."

The princess raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "Yes. That's right. His mother died when his sister was born, and his sister is three and a half years younger than him…"

A weak cry was let out on the other side of the wall, and Zelda took the empty soup bowl. Without even looking over her shoulder, she said, "He needs you, you know."

And then, she was gone, leaving Link alone in with the boy he was supposed to be guiding.

Somehow, he knew that her words were about more than just teaching the boy how to fight. The young Wind Waker needed a friend.

000

Aimlessly, the Hero of Winds climbed the ladder to the upper level. He was fairly certain he'd lost grip and fallen off at least once, but he was numb to everything but the feverish words exiting his caretaker's mouth.

Even now she was whispering, "Link… Aryll… don't leave your poor old grandma… alone…"

And it broke Link's heart.

Once he finally got to the top of the ladder, he shakily pulled himself up to his knees and crawled over to where he knew his grandma always kept some extra-blankets. By some magic—because he couldn't see through the tears that were welling up in his eyes—he managed to grab several and make it downstairs without breaking anything.

Granted, he had to jump off of the ladder, and he didn't exactly land right, but what did it matter?

He stumbled over to where his grandma was still sitting by the fire and placed the blankets over her as gently as he could. He smelled her soup cooking and wished more than anything that she would've had some of it, herself. It would've made her well almost instantly…

'_Are you all right?' _his guide was suddenly saying, and the boy hero had a feeling that 'Navi' had already asked him this several times. Link tried to say something to let the 'fairy' let him know that he'd heard, at least, but his throat hurt with the unfamiliar pain of crying. And he couldn't truthfully either nod or shake his head. His feelings were too mixed-up for that.

'_Hey… it's okay to cry,' _'Navi' whispered, and Link discovered that he wanted nothing in the world more than a hug. Well, that and his grandma being healed.

The thought made more tears well up in his eyes, and after a minute or two more, the Outsetter started to hiccup.

"I…I don't…," a sharp _hic!_ interrupted his sentence, and Link coughed from the many different things his throat was trying to do. "I don't know… I don't know what to do!"

'Navi' let out a quiet sigh, and was quiet for a moment.

'_Take a deep breath, Link,' _his guide said gently, and the hero found himself unconsciously doing so. _'Good. Now breathe in a little more… a little more… hold it… now let it out.' _

Link found that, along with a slightly uncomfortable feeling in his lungs, his hiccups were gone.

'_Good… Okay. Now. Wipe your eyes—I think I know how to help your grandma.' _

The hero's chin started to quiver once more, and he bit his lip to keep from crying again. "You… you do?"

'_Yes,' _the pseudo-fairy said quietly. _'There's something magical on this island. I can feel it…' _

"Really?" asked the child, though he dared not hope too much. He wiped his eyes with his sleeve and looked up expectantly at the roof.

'_Really. It must be in the forbidden woods, though… I doubt that you guys have anything magical in the lower levels of the island…' _

Link nodded slowly. "If there was, I'm sure they would've already given it to her."

'_Right,' _'Navi' said, and the hero got the impression of a man nodding. _'Now… I think that the bridge is out, but if you have your Deku Leaf, it shouldn't be a problem.'_

There was little that either of them could do about Link's constant sniffling, but at the moment, well... the young hero decided that he could deal with it.

…

The moment he got to the old trail that led to the bridge, Link discovered that it had been overtaken by weeds, and the trees he'd cut down last time he went through here had already grown back.

…And to top it off, the moment he cut down the trees, a sudden army of Miniblins rushed at him.

The hero barely managed to fight them off, mainly because he hadn't been expecting them.

"Where did these come from?" Link asked between desperate slashes.

'_How should I know? I can't see everything!'_ 'Navi' protested, sounding slightly unnerved. _'On your left side. A fuller swing will knock 'em all out.' _

"Thanks," the hero said in-between slashes. Sure enough, the wide swing had knocked away all of the closest creatures. Unfortunately, more seemed to be on the way. He could hear their annoying screeches already…

'_There's too many of them. Just focus on running, okay? There's a ledge at the very top of this side of the mountain… just use your baton-thing to make the wind blow the right way.' _

Link nodded, already pulling himself up onto the highest ledge. The miniblins tried to follow, of course, but they couldn't come all at once.

The baton let off some sparks, but the wind started to blow to the west. Link immediately dug around in his pockets until he found his Deku Leaf. And so, with a running start, he leapt into the air. Before he knew it, he'd already touched the ground and was rolling to safety.

'_Nice job, kid,' _the pseudo-fairy said, and the hero gave a half-hearted smile. After a minute or two, 'Navi' spoke up again. _'You'll be okay, right?'_

"What…?"

'_Regardless of whether or not this heals your grandma, you'll be okay… right?'_

Link didn't reply, instead choosing to stare down the cliff, in the general direction of his house.

'_I mean, I'm pretty sure that this'll work, but if it doesn't, I need to make sure you'll be okay.'_

"I'm not losing both Aryll and my grandma," the hero said, suddenly glaring. The firmness in his voice seemed to silence 'Navi'.

Link looked away from his house and turned towards the forest. He drew his sword and took a deep breath… and opened his eyes.

Green was everywhere, and 'Navi' suddenly saw the resemblance between these woods and the Forbidden Woods near the Forest Haven. Granted, he didn't remember these Forbidden Woods ever being this dark—to be honest, it _wasn't_ any time that he'd actually been conscious—but so long as Link kept his sword with him at all times and kept his mind alert, he'd be fine.

There was some rustling to his left, and the young hero slashed at the air.

'_Congrats, kid. You just killed a butterfly.' _

Link gave a sheepish smile, about to protest, and presumably say something stupid, but 'Navi' cut him off.

'_Hm. There is something here, though… Up ahead! No, wait, kind of to the left…' _

"Hyaaaah!" the hero cried, slashing the directed area, and finding—to some satisfaction—that something on the receiving end of his sword let out a squeal. There was a sudden _poof!_, and then… nothing.

Content that nothing was going to sneak up behind him, Link made his way a little further to the left.

…He immediately tripped over a tree-root and landed flat on his face.

"…Nawd a wuud," the Outsetter said, mouth half-full of grass.

'_Darn. I'd actually been planning on saying something quite clever…'_

"Shudd id."

Link spit out the weeds and glared at the sky. Or, at least, he was pretty sure it was the sky. It was too dark to see anything other than his hand in front of his face, and even then, he had a slim chance of seeing anything but the outline.

'_You do know that the exit is to your left, right?'_

The hero ignored his guide's words, but turned ever so slightly to his left, anyways. It didn't take more than two seconds for him to bash his forehead against the sudden wall.

'_Oh. Yeah. There's a wall there, too. Just a heads up.' _

"Some heads up," the boy said, rubbing his sore nose.

'…_Just climb.' _

"Yes, oh great and powerful Navi…" Link said sarcastically, and hesitantly raised his hands until he felt the ledge in his fingertips. It was a good deal harder to get up the ledge at night than it'd been during the day all those weeks ago, but he managed.

'_Probably a good thing that you can't see. You look like a soggy piece of bread, and your clothes are seriously torn.'_

…Well, he managed. He never said that he'd managed _well_.

"Yeah, yeah. Lecture me another time, will ya? I just need to figure out where that darn fairy is…"

'_Treat her with some respect, kid! She's gonna heal your grandma, after all.' _

Link sighed, nodding, and drew his sword. "…Any bad guys over here?"

'…_I think…'_

"I thought you could see in this!" the hero shrieked, and instantly regretted it. He heard a grunt from beside him, and he slashed the direction it came from. The grunt turned into a pig-squeal, and he heard a _poof!_ Link sighed in relief, and put his hands out in front of him.

"Now… where is she?" he asked, looking around.

'_Get out your bombs… good, now throw it kind of, but not very, hard directly in front of you. It should bounce off the wall at the right angle…' _

The explosion momentarily lit up the forest, and Link ran to the general direction of the light.

…The light, however, vanished as quick as it had come, and he found himself suddenly falling… but instead of hitting the ground, he felt almost… suspended in mid-air? It felt familiar... like the feeling when he had floated up from both the fire-monster's nest and the planting-spot of the giant flower.

'_I think you found it.' _

Link stared at the scene before him. There were lights everywhere—everything seemed to made of fireflies, or were those tiny fairies? Or perhaps individual sparks of light…?

He unconsciously walked towards the spring in the center of the room. He reached a hand towards the tiny fairy floating above the stream… when suddenly, she vanished.

Link blinked, tilting his head to the side, hand still reaching for the fairy that was no longer there. But then, a larger fairy, colored a very dark red with a dress that seemed to twist around itself at her legs appeared.

"Greetings, young Waker of the Winds…" she said, and her voice was unearthly. "Allow me to aide you on your quest?"

It took a moment, but Link finally registered that she was speaking to him. He nodded uncertainly, and suddenly, she was winking at him, holding a flower made of light out to him. The hero reached for it, but suddenly, it exploded, and petals were blown his way.

He felt something wrap around him, somehow going inside of him as well. Everything was… warm… for a moment, and his clothes were instantly dried, although his hair was still partially damp.

He stared towards the fairy for a moment more, and she smiled at him.

"When you grow weary of your battles, come to this spring and you will be refreshed."

And just like that, she was gone. In her place were about a dozen smaller fairies, and Link ran towards the stream. His boots had already gotten wet before he knew what he was doing.

'_Hey, nice job, man! She just gave you a bigger rupee wallet! Now you can hold, like, a thousand rupees!' _'Navi' said excitedly, but the hero was strangely quiet. _'Hey, what's wrong?'_

"I didn't get to ask her to help my grandma…" the boy whispered, looking down at the ground, obviously ashamed. A fairy floated around him, and he felt more of the warmth pass through him.

It was quiet for a moment, and Link's eyes were threatening to tear up again, but suddenly, he heard a light laugh from 'Navi'.

"What's so… what's so funny?" the boy asked, sniffling.

'_You still have the empty bottle that Medli gave you, right?' _the fairy asked, and Link got it out, raising an eyebrow apprehensively. _'So, capture one of the little fairies and use it on your grandma!' _

The boy was silent. He looked at the bottle, then at the fairy closest to him, then smiled. It was only a small smile, but it was a clear sign that he was happier then than he'd been for a long time…

With a single swipe, he captured the fairy and clipped the bottle back to his belt.

He ran back towards the portal to the surface with one last, lingering glance to the spring. It was such a foreign place… and yet, he thought it was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. The hero felt energized enough to go take down Ganondorf right then and there—although, based on his experience, he had a feeling it wouldn't have been the best idea.

'_First time meeting a fairy, huh?' _his guide asked, breaking the silence. Link nodded, still smiling. _'She was pretty, wasn't she? And nicer than the legends ever spoke of. That's because they were so mysterious, and those that had wicked hearts and lusted for power were the only ones who ever sought out the Great Fairies. Heroes like yourself and… um, the Hero of Time, though, were always given new power or gifts of great magnitude.' _

Link looked up at the sky, blinking away the rain that fell in his eyes. "…So the Fairy considered me a hero…?" he asked, self-consciously looking at the blade strapped to his back.

'_Well, duh! Look, kid, I'm not sure how many of the old legends actually trickled down to you and maintained their truthfulness… but there are very few people that ever try to get to the fairies—corrupt nobles seeking extra power, purely evil people, and heroes that need the power and energy to complete their quests. Normal, everyday, decent people almost never need it and instead choose to conserve the powers for those that truly need it—in other words, they keep it hidden for heroes to find.' _

"Huh," Link said, scratching the back of his head. "I guess people really need to update the legends then, right?"

The pseudo-fairy didn't reply,and the hero decided to drop the subject.

"Guess I better get home, then…" he mumbled, quickening his pace just slightly. Soon, he came back to the entrance of the forest, and the ledge was there again. He saw the miniblins still crowding at the edge of the cliff, and Link decided that he didn't want to deal with them again. So, he got out his Deku Leaf and dived down towards the ground. The wind caught him and he floated gently until his feet touched the ground.

Unfortunately, by the time he actually got inside, the good of the fairy drying his clothes was basically gone, and he was soaked from head to toe. Link almost knocked before he realized that no one would answer him…

The Outsetter slipped in through the door and tiptoed over to where his grandma still sat by the fire. She was, thankfully, still in the blankets, and they seemed to have done her some good, but she was still mumbling anxiously.

Link carefully walked closer to her and slowly, hopefully, opened the bottle.

The fairy flew out, obviously happy to be free, and circled around both hero and grandma. She decided very quickly who she wanted to help, and his grandma stirred as soon as the fairy had disappeared, leaving a trail of sparks behind it.

His grandma opened one eye, then the other, and then jerked fully awake at the sight of her Link standing before her.

"Oh… Link! Did you do this? Did you heal me?" her grandson blushed, and she took that as a yes. "You were always such a sweet boy… have you had any luck finding Aryll?"

Link looked away, suddenly finding the floor interesting, though he'd lived in that house since he was three and a half.

"Hm… Well, I'm sure you'll have luck later on, if you still wish to find her. But as for right now…" suddenly, she stopped speaking, then examined her grandson from head to toe. "For shame, Link!"

The hero startled, sheepishly looking at his soaking wet tunic.

"Honestly, boy, have you been running around in the rain all night?" she asked, already tsk-ing at him. She snatched his hat off of his head, then grabbed his old clothes from a stool beside the fire. "You need to get changed, then you're going to get a good night's sleep. And I don't want to hear any ifs, ands, or buts about it! I'm going to make some soup—it should be ready when you wake up."

Link looked at his grandma, then out the window, hoping that his guide would assist him.

'…_I feel inclined to agree with her, kid, but you need to obtain the pearl first. The pirates will eventually figure out that something's up, and then you'll watch them get Nayru's pearl, instead. Maybe you should explain…?' _

Link shook his head feverishly. No, he did _not_ want to explain to his grandma exactly what he'd been up to… but that didn't change the fact that multiple civilizations were depending on him.

Nervously, he cleared his throat. "Grandma?" he began, raising an index finger. "I'll only be a few minutes… I really, really need to get something really quick…"

She turned around quickly, raising an eyebrow. "What's so important out there? If you stay in the rain too long, you'll get sick… You of all people should know that."

'_You get sick easily?' _'Navi' asked, and Link felt suddenly embarrassed. He made a 'one minute, I'll explain later,' motion with the hand behind his back, and hoped his guide would understand.

"Grandma, I need to just go out around to the backside of the island… there's something I need to get, really, really quickly. It's important, and I need it to save Aryll."

Something sparked in his grandma's eyes, but she counted to ten inside of her head, and let out a calm breath. "…Be back in under an hour, boy, or you'll catch it. And I'm not just talking about a cold, either," she said in a warning voice, and Link grinned at her.

He swung the sheath to his sword back around his shoulders and grabbed the other items he needed. His grandma watched him go with a sad look in her eyes, and suddenly, Link felt guilty for leaving her alone so much. Before he walked out the door, he embraced her tightly.

"I'll be back in less than half an hour. Probably…" he added, shrugging. He pecked her on the cheek then darted out the door, halfway to his boat before he realized that his hat was still sitting by the fire.

The hero boarded his boat with a small smile, grateful to have been able to see his grandma again. But right then, he had a job to do, and he couldn't afford to be distracted…

'_The stone wall is on the north-eastern side of the island, in case you're wondering,'_ 'Navi' said, and Link sighed, gratefully. He tied the sail back onto his boat as quick as he could, and then it was off to find the pearl.

…

It didn't take long before he was swirling around in a whirlpool. Thankfully, his bombs were fully stocked, and he had thirty shots to take. Unfortunately… the whirlpool he was stuck in only let him fire when he was closest to the wall.

_BOOM!_

The first third of the wall crumbled, and Link let out a quiet cheer.

'_Nice job, kid. Now, you just gotta do that, like, two more times. Stay ready, will ya?'_

Link nodded, and it didn't take long before not only the second layer was gone, but the third had exploded as well. The whirlpool vanished the moment that the stone wall crumbled completely, and the King of Red Lions sailed into the cave.

Almost immediately, a giant blue fish with a light hanging from its head popped out from the water. It said something in a foreign language, though it sounded cheerful. The King of Red Lions nodded about whatever it had said.

"Well met, indeed, Jabun. I am pleased to see that you are safe…"

The fish said something more, and Link stared on in confusion. He wondered how his boat had learned to not only speak, but to speak a language long-since extinct…

"Yes. It seems that Ganon has returned. There can be no other explanation."

Jabun looked towards Link, who immediately shrunk under the fish's scrutinizing eye. Jabun said more in the foreign language, and the boat sighed at whatever it was that he'd said.

"Unfortunately, that is not so."

The fish seemed almost angry at the King of Red Lion's reply, but the boat stood his ground. "The one I have brought with me has no connection with the Legendary One,"

'_I resent that,' _'Navi' whispered, and Link fought the urge to giggle. It seemed highly inappropriate in the presence of the fish that already seemed to hate him, anyways…

"However, I sense great promise in the courage that this one possesses."

Jabun stared hard at both the boy and the boat, and seemed to ask a question. From what Link could understand by the tone, the fish was not happy.

'_Hey! Watch what you say about him, he's done more in three weeks than you've done in many, many years!' _'Navi' said, suddenly angry, though Link hadn't the slightest clue why. After all, he didn't understand a word of what the fish was saying…

"I do. That is the only way," the King of Red Lions said, and Link held his breath.

The fish looked thoughtful for a moment, then sighed. It spoke more in its native tongue, but the boat had apparently convinced Jabun of whatever it was they were talking about.

Suddenly, Jabun whipped the light hanging from in front of him off of the string it'd been attached to. It turned out to be the pearl they'd been looking for, and Link held it closely. He stared into it, and, like the others, it had an ancient symbol on it. He couldn't guess what it meant, but somehow… he figured that it was very, very important.

The King of Red Lions started to sail away, but stopped as Jabun gave additional instructions in the foreign language. The talking boat seemed unsettled by what the fish had said, and whispered, "So… that foul rain and endless night were indeed elements of a curse brought upon us by Ganon! He must intend to cast this land into pure darkness for all time…"

Jabun said something back, very quietly, and the King of Red Lions nodded. "I believe I have," he said, and the fish started to talk very quickly. After it had finished speaking, it dove into the sea, and the King of Red Lions sailed out of the cavern.

…

The boat docked at the port of Outset Island, and Link immediately jumped off. The King of Red Lions raised an eyebrow, but the Outsetter just shrugged.

'…_Hate to break it to you, kid, but if you're not there in the next five minutes, you'll be late.' _

Link bolted.

Thankfully, though, his house was really about thirty seconds away, though it seemed like longer as he finally barreled through the door.

"Oh! Link!" his grandma said, clearly pleased to see him. "You're almost twenty minutes early." She smiled, and the hero glared at nothing in particular, but his guide just laughed.

'_You have an awful concept of time. I think you should get one of those old-fashioned hourglasses. It'd keep you on time, that's for sure.' _

For some reason, this made a shiver go up his spine. "I'll pass, thanks," he whispered, quiet enough for his grandma—who had poor hearing in her old age—not to hear.

"Now, as promised," she said sternly, "I believe it's your bedtime. You look absolutely exhausted, dear."

Link rubbed the back of his head nervously, then nodded and kicked off his boots. Thankfully, his grandma had already set out his pajamas and a towel out on the bed, and had discreetly turned away while he changed.

It took a minute to finally peel off his drenched clothes, but he finally succeeded. Wrapping a towel around him, along with a few blankets, he dried off before changing into clean clothes.

He immediately decided that the warm, dry, _and_ clean clothes were nothing short of a miracle, and treated them as such. Link let out a contented sigh before climbing the ladder to his bed.

It took about three seconds to fall asleep, and he didn't stir until the sun was high in the sky.

…

And, true to form, he woke up to his own loud sneeze and a chill that couldn't have possibly come from the room heated by the fire and the afternoon sunlight.

**XXX**

**Hey! Yeah, you, who just read down to the ending author comments, and are currently at the very beginning of them! Yeah, you! Go check out dragoness of storm's "Legend of Zelda: The Guardian". It is amazing and needs a lot more reviews—she really deserves them, because she works really hard on each chapter. Writing can be such a thankless job at first, but this girl should have at least fifty reviews. And I'm not exaggerating, either—this story is just that great. It's got mystery, it's got suspense, and has the slightest hint of romance to give it flavor. **

**Read and Review, both this story and hers! **

…**Pretty pretty please? **


	12. Elixir Soup

**What? Three chapters in a row with disclaimers, making this chapter the fourth? Maybe it's finally getting through to you guys that I don't own Legend of Zelda… **

**Oh? You never thought so in the first place? Darn… now this disclaimer has become very awkward very, very quickly… Ah, well, if you'll save your tears, we can get onto the story. **

**XXX**

The Hero of Winds groggily sat up, trying to clear the many dreams that had collected in his head while he'd been asleep. He'd dreamed of everything from seeing his sister kidnapped, then taking off on an epic adventure that included him getting shot into a fortress where he had to fight without a sword, something about a creepy forest filled with plants that wanted to eat him and blobs that splattered into his hair, a mysterious voice that continually gave him directions, and a very pretty pirate girl…

'_Ah. Link. Nice to see that you're up—you've been out for a while, but you kind of looked like you needed it, so I'm glad you slept in.' _

Link sat up very quickly, nearly bashing his head on the ceiling from the suddenness. He briefly glanced around the room to look for the voice's owner, but after a moment, he remembered.

"Hey, uh, 'Navi,'" the hero whispered, unused to his voice being so dry. Then, he seemed to recall the last month or so's various misadventures, and strained to figure out how he'd ended up at his own house. "How did I…?"

'…_Huh. Figures. But I guess your grandma wasn't lying when she said you got sick easily. You've been running a pretty high fever all night, and if… erm, my instincts are correct, then you're still not doing so well. How are you feeling?' _

Link shrugged. He'd felt worse before—breaking his arm and falling into a magma pit definitely still topped out—so he wasn't going to complain, but that didn't mean he felt exceedingly comfortable.

'Navi' 'hmm…'d briefly, not really voicing an opinion to Link's quietness. _'Your throat hurt or something?' _

The hero nodded, pressing one hand to it. Despite the late afternoon sun shining brightly through the window, he felt suddenly cold and almost immediately dived back under the blankets.

'_Well, that's never a good sign…' _

Link coughed briefly, not liking how his head pounded, or how cold everything had suddenly gotten. Absentmindedly, he wrapped the blankets around him tighter and tucked his feet closer to his torso.

'_You should go back to sleep, kid. You don't sound too good, and the soup your grandma said she'd made isn't ready yet. She said something about adding a secret ingredient to it…' _

Despite his guide's comment about sleep, Link's eyes widened. _She was going outside? But there were probably still monsters on the loose!_

'_What?' _'Navi' asked, confused at the boy's sudden panick.

"Nothing, just…" the hero's voice was rough and he immediately sneezed, which seemed to offset a long round of coughing. "Ugh. Sorry, I guess I kind of just… overreacted. Do you think you can check for any of those creatures still on the island…? I… um, I need to know."

His guide chuckled a little. _'Link. Trust me on this—all the monsters on this island vanished when that endless night cleared up. So don't worry about her, okay? She's fine—in fact, I think she's just about back from Sturgeon's house.'_

Right on cue, Link's grandma walked through the door. The hero clumsily turned over onto his stomach so he could see her, and she squinted up at him. "Ah! What a pleasant surprise! I hadn't expected you to be up yet, you know. If I'd have known you were to wake while I was gone, I wouldn't have left."

Link smiled a little, laughing lightly at her hospitality, but sneezed halfway through. His grandma _tsk_-ed at him, opening the bottle of whatever it was she'd gotten, and poured it into the soup.

"Now, dear, I want you to try not to strain yourself. This soup will take away the fever, but you shouldn't rough it. I don't know what all you're doing in your travels, but take it easy, will you? I don't much enjoy seeing my grandson come home weeks after he leaves on a strange boat, then comes back on a different one, using a sword and shield and any number of other dangerous things that I know for a fact you didn't leave with… and then finding that you played out in the rain all night," she chided him, stirring the soup with a long spoon.

She looked at the shelf above her absentmindedly, then selected a large, wooden bowl. "Alright, dear. The soup's ready. Are you well enough to get down the ladder okay?"

Link huffed, pouting at her treatment of him. He wanted to say, _'Well, of course I'm fine, Grandma, after all, I'm coming back from an adventure where I had to fight countless adversaries, so climbing down a ladder is no big deal, no matter what condition I'm in.' _But, of course, because he cared about her, he couldn't very well say that.

It also didn't help that he found it actually _was_ a bit of a strain climbing down the ladder, though it wasn't too hard to keep him from finishing. By the time he got to the very bottom, his head felt strangely light, and the cold he felt earlier then changed into a pressing heat.

"Ah, there you go dear," his grandma said gently, slowly sliding a nearby table over to where he sat. "Careful, though, it's hot."

The idea of adding more heat to his already too warm body wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, but he knew that he'd have to tough it out. After all, his grandma was practically the island's healer, and her soup was half-considered legendary with the way it seemed to cure any illness.

The hero took a careful sip from the edge of the bowl and smiled. Somehow, instead of the heat making him even more uncomfortable, it had taken away some of the heat that'd been taking over the rest of him. Even his head felt a little better.

Within minutes, he'd finished the rest of the soup and leaned back contentedly in the chair.

His throat no longer felt scratchy, and although he felt extremely tired, he felt as healthy as he had before he'd started on his adventure.

'_Hey, your grandma must be a really good cook. You look better already!' _'Navi' said, more cheerful than he usually sounded. _'Do you feel a lot better?' _

Link gave a sleepy nod, hoping that his grandma hadn't seen, and yawned, stretching out his arms. It was funny—as a little kid, he remembered feeling wide-awake after having Elixir Soup…

"Hm," she said, smiling. "It looks like you're still tired. I'd say it's your bedtime, then."

The hero nodded again, and clumsily got up, half-pushing his chair in as he walked back to the bunk-bed. With more effort than it should've took, he climbed up the ladder and pulled the blankets back around him.

"Goodnight," his grandma whispered before reclaiming her vigil at her rocking-chair. Because, whether the boy liked it or not, she was going to make sure that he wasn't shivering or sweating at the blankets, and not tossing and turning from bad dreams, either.

Link fell asleep instantly, and his grandma fleetingly wondered if she'd put a little too much of that 'secret-ingredient' sleeping herb into the soup. Ah, well, she thought. At least he hadn't seen her put it in—it'd been only put in his bowl, after all, so she could easily give him the rest of the soup for staying power, not sleep.

000

The Hero of Time fought the urge to laugh. That was the second time in the boy's adventure that he'd had to be drugged to sleep. Granted, this time he needed it because he really was tired, but that didn't mean that Link couldn't find it funny. …Even if it was slightly uncouth. Besides, it wasn't like he was going to tell the kid, or anything. He doubted that he Hero of Winds even knew.

At the moment, though, the hero was leaning lazily against the wall, waiting for either the kid to wake up or Zelda to visit. She was usually more on time than this…

000

The Ex-Princess of Hyrule was currently in the Library of Legends, and trying to find a copy of the ancient manuscript. She'd been searching for a while, now, and it seemed to be getting harder and harder to even find a lead to it…

After what must've been an hour later, she slumped down into one of the richly decorated chairs and put her head in her hands. Fleetingly, she thought that it would've been better to have Link there with her. He'd always been so good at finding hidden things, after all—even boss keys, buried deep within caverns and crevices, weren't an issue. Surely a library book would be easy to locate…?

But as quickly as the thought came, Zelda dismissed it. His job was now to look after the next hero, even if it was from a distance.

Still, it didn't exactly help her then.

"Excuse me, miss?" a young woman said, and the princess gasped. Not because of the woman's youth—certainly not; everyone was reverted back to the prime of their life when they ascended to the Realm of Heroes—but because of who she was.

"…You're the Ancient Sage of Spirits, right?"

The woman—Zelda seemed to recall her name being similar to Nabooru, the sage's great-great grandneice, but not quite the same—smiled and laughed awkwardly. "Yes, I am. Might I ask what the occasion is, for a sage to be addressed so cordially by the Princess of Hyrule?"

Said Princess of Hyrule raised an eyebrow and stood up, pushing her chair in and holding a hand out. "Sorry, but here, I happen to just be Zelda. Princess though I might've been, that title belongs to another now."

The woman smiled. "Then I suggest not calling me the 'Ancient Sage of Spirits'. It might've been several hundred years since I lived in the Gerudo Valley… but I still go by Naroou." And the sage stuck out her hand, which the princess took with relish.

Zelda blushed a little, shaking the woman's hand. "Then it is a pleasure to meet you, Naroou."

They stood like that, and the sage seemed to pick up on Zelda's hesitance. "You had a question, didn't you? You at least must be wondering something—you are in the Library of Legends, after all."

The princess fought back a tight smile. "Actually… yes. You see, I'm not sure if you've been keeping up to date with the Mirror…"

"Yes, I have," Naroou said with a curious nod. "This involves both Heroes, does it not?"

"It does. Once Time's Hero started to mentor the Hero of Winds… well, it seems that our Link is able to do a good deal more than he's supposed to be able to do."

Naroou furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't quite know what you mean…"

Zelda sighed, resisting the urge to convey her frustration with her hands. She was still a noble, after all—she'd been raised to be polite. "I don't suppose you can hear the dialogue going on with the heroes?"

Naroou nodded, looking incredulous. "I can, the same as the rest of the Council."

"Then, do you remember, when the Hero of Winds jumped from the Pirate Ship and into the water? With newly acquired bombs, no less? Didn't you find something… strange about it?"

It took a moment, but the Sage of Spirits eventually understood her implications. She nodded, then, pensively bringing a hand to her chin. " I… I do not know why you're coming to me for help, though I do understand your concern. I might be able to redirect you to a different sage, one more knowledgeable in the matter…"

Zelda shook her head. "There are few on the Council that I trust, and although I don't know you well, I have never heard of a Spirit Sage being untrustworthy. It comes with your… abilities. Plus," the princess added, almost in an afterthought, "I was really wondering about the alternate timeline's hero…"

"The Hero of Twilight?" Naroou looked concerned. "I don't understand…"

Zelda took a deep breath, resisting the urge to voice her frustrations. "Did the Hero of Twilight not have a guide, as well? And didn't that guide have the ability to maintain a physical form?"

"Only during certain times of day," the sage was quick to point out. "But… I think I'm beginning to see…"

The Princess of Hyrule sighed in relief. "Yes. I have been looking into some of the prophecies of old; I have reason to believe that his ability to… somehow protect the child physically… may be a sign of further involvement. I need to look further into it, but I can't seem to find the right documents…"

The Sage of Spirits gave her a sly smile—it had scarcely been seen on her for the last several centuries. "I believe, Zelda, that you have come to the right person. I think I know just what you're looking for."

And with that, the pair walked off, deeper into the Library, in search of ancient manuscripts long-since forgotten, whispering plans and theories.

In short, it was the beginning of partnership, and, perhaps, friendship.

000

Night had nearly fallen by the time the Hero of Winds finally rose. He rubbed his eyes for a moment, sitting up. He felt at least a hundred times better than he had when he'd woken up last time, so he was almost surprised at how pleasant the cool air felt. After all, he wasn't diving for the blankets this time…

'_Good morn… well, evening, I guess,' _'Navi' said, automatically greeting the boy. _'I assume, from the way your fever's disappeared and you don't seem to be in pain, that you're feeling better?'_

Link nodded, stretching with a yawn. His grandma caught the movement and glanced up at him.

"Oh!" his grandma suddenly said, beaming up at the hero. "You're awake? My, I hadn't expected you to sleep this late. Have you been getting enough rest on your adventures, dear?"

She seemed a little worried, but Link just smiled, choosing his words carefully. "I'm fine; I guess the rain just didn't agree with me…"

'_Yeah, so nice of you to squirm your way out of telling the full truth,' _'Navi' chided him, but Link just gave a small shrug.

His grandmother nodded, still a little inquisitive, but willing to accept his answer for now. "Well, I'm sure you had shelter for the most of it."

Link got quiet for a moment, but let her believe his explanation. He wasn't going to lie to her, but it wasn't as if he wanted to worry her even more. She'd gotten sick from it, after all.

So, with a smile, he hopped down the ladder and gave her a quick hug. After all, he still had to save Aryll.

…

Not five minutes later, he'd gathered all of his supplies and donned the 'legendary' green tunic once more. Link had wondered, for a moment, why he'd chosen to stay in that instead of something else—he'd almost wanted to stay in his pajamas, but very quickly chose against it—but for some reason… there was some magic in the air, and he felt like honoring the Legendary Hero.

'_Huh,' _'Navi' said after the boy had changed. _'You look a lot like him, actually… You know, now that you're nice and clean and your tunic isn't all ripped and stuff.' _

Link gave an embarrassed "hmph" and turned away. Furiously, he whispered, "Were you watching me change or something?"

'_You pervert. No, okay? I saw that you were about to change and turned away. Actually, I was just watching the King of Red Lions… He looks a little impatient.' _

The hero sighed, looking out the window. His boat _did_ look impatient…

'_You still have to put the pearls back where they belong. I have a feeling that something important is going to come out of that… but I can't be too sure.' _

Link nodded, then glanced back at his grandmother. She watched him as he put his sword back in its sheath—he silently thanked her for drying it off; it would've been awful if it'd rusted—and sling the sheath over his shoulder, putting his shield over the top of it where it could easily be reached if he needed it.

"You're leaving so soon?" she asked, furrowing her brows. "I'd hoped that you would stay for a little while longer…"

Link, however, just looked down at the ground, not wanting to be caught in her gaze. "I still have to rescue Aryll. She's… she's depending on me."

And suddenly, her sad stare vanished. "Yes, of course. How rude it would have been of me if I'd tried to keep you from saving her. I… I'm sorry for being so selfish."

The hero smiled gently, and she seemed to take it as a cue to go on. "But… I would really feel better if you took some of the Elixir Soup with you. You don't look like you've been eating or sleeping enough, and I didn't see any food with your supplies, you know."

Link blushed, nervously scratching the back of his head and his grandma raised an eyebrow. But, thankfully, she chose not to comment on it—instead choosing to fill an empty bottle of her own with the soup. She handed it to him, forcing a smile. "Take it. You can keep the bottle, too. Do you have any other empty ones that you'd like me to fill?"

Link searched around in his pockets for a moment, then brought out the one that Medli had given to him. He handed it to her, and in turn, she filled it up, too.

His grandma smiled. "There are two servings of my soup in each, dear. And when they're gone, please, get some food from an outside source. I know very well that the journey here from just about anywhere else is a long one, so I know that you can't come here whenever you want… But, Link?" she asked earnestly. "You can come by whenever you like, and… and I'll make you some more, and you can sleep in your own bed. Okay?"

Link grinned, taking the bottles. But instead of putting them on his person, he set them to the side for a moment and embraced her. "I will, whenever I can."

They stepped away after a moment, and the hero awkwardly found a pocket that was sturdy enough to keep the bottles from breaking. He slid the bottles inside, wondering (as always) how he managed to carry so much with him. But if it worked… it worked.

With that, he walked out the door, looking back at his grandma with a sad smile.

"Be careful…" she whispered, forcing herself to remain in place instead of running after him. Link nodded, closing the door softly.

…

The Hero of Winds forced a smile onto his face as he got into the boat. He unfolded his sail slowly, lingering a moment before he tied it onto the small mast.

The King of Red Lions seemed to pick up on this. "You will be able to return here again, do not worry. But for now… I have marked where you need to go to return the pearls."

Link nodded wordlessly, finishing the knots to hold the sail in place. He placed one hand on the rudder and with the other, he held out his Wind Waker. He moved it up, then to either side… and suddenly, the wind was blowing North-East.

Surprisingly, it didn't take more than a few hours to get to the first island.

Monsters surrounded it, though, and the hero stared at them.

"Why are they here?" he asked, searching for something useful to destroy them with.

'_I don't know. I mean, you'd think that the statues of the goddesses would have relatively safe islands…' _'Navi' seemed to catch onto Link's struggle, and sighed. _'Okay, kid. What creatures have you already encountered that look or act kind of like these things?'_

Link was quiet for a moment, scratching the back of his neck. "Um… Those black thingies at the Forbidden Woods?"

'_Yup. And how did you destroy those?'_

"By using my Deku Leaf?" he asked, curiously.

'_Okay, you might've at first… but what was more effective?' _

"Boomerang!" the hero suddenly shouted, making the King of Red Lions turn around with a curious expression.

"Hm?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at the boy's sudden outburst.

"N-Nothing…" Link mumbled, getting the boomerang, already targeting several of the Seahats at once. He managed to nail most of them, and then it just became a job of hitting them with the boomerang again.

'_Nice job, kid,' _his guide said with what could only be an eye-roll and a smile. _'Now… I'm pretty sure that that's Nayru's statue, so put her pearl on it.' _

"…Which would be…?" the hero asked, looking uncertainly at the three pearls.

'Navi' sighed dramatically. _'Which one matches the symbol that she has?' _

"Well, I'm not on the island yet," Link whispered, sticking out his tongue as he hopped out of his boat and onto the dry land. With some effort, he managed to pull himself onto the highest platform.

On it was a statue with a strange blue marking on its head. Link fumbled around with the pears he had, and found that the pearl he'd most recently gotten matched the symbol… He shrugged, putting the pearl into the stone's outstretched arms.

It didn't do anything special, aside from send out a slight pulse of light.

'_Good, kid. You just have to get the other two now.' _

Link nodded, not bothering to change the wind. He already had to get North-East, after all…

…

Northern Triangle Island didn't turn out to be all that much more exciting. Excepting, of course, the many Octoroks guarding it.

"…Again, why are they even here?" Link asked, grumbling other words that sounded a lot like the ancient curses…

'_Dude. Seriously? You just got back from your grandma's house. I get that you're annoyed—believe me, I've been listening to you for the last half-hour—but seriously?' _

The hero, however, just pouted, not bothering with the monsters and diving into the water.

'_Huh. That's one way to do it…'_ 'Navi' said with a laugh, watching Link swim through the Octorok-infested waters.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I should've done something about them… but quite frankly, I just want to finish this up really quick so I can save my sister." He looked almost sad for a moment…

'_Hey, cheer up,' _his guide urged, _'You'll do it in no time.' _

"Promise?" Link asked, still frowning.

'_You and I both know that I can't promise anything. I'm just a disembodied voice, after all…" _'Navi' said ironically,_ "But I have a good feeling, okay? Besides, it's never good when a hero gets down.'_

"Why am I held up to some standard, when everyone else gets to feel whatever they want?" he pouted. Link knew very well that it was childish and immature, but what was wrong with not being some super-mature adult? He was still a kid, after all, and he knew it.

'_Well…' _'Navi' didn't seem to have an answer for that right away. _'I guess that you're, you know, the hero. You're supposed to be ever-optimistic and…' _

'Navi' trailed off, leaving Link to wonder what he'd been trying to say. "And what?"

'…_And I guess it isn't fair to ask you to be something you're not. But, you know, I don't like seeing you frown, either, okay? You're doing all this to save your little sister, and I just wish you could be… happier.' _

The hero raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "I guess I get what you're trying to say. It's just… I know I just got back from Outset, but…"

'_You miss your grandma… and your sister.' _It wasn't a question. _'Trust me, I get it.' _

Link sighed, sitting on the ledge where the statue also sat. He half-heartedly tossed Din's Pearl in the air for a little while, thankfully catching it each time. After a moment, though, he stood up and placed the artifact carefully onto the statue.

'_Don't worry about it, kid. You'll see them both soon enough. But for now… just one more statue, okay?' _

Link nodded, hopping down from the island and getting back into the boat, thankful that the sail was still up. He changed the direction of the wind lethargically, and soon, they were headed for the final island.

Both hero and guide knew that the trip would be long, and it didn't help that it was still dark. Still, the stars were rather pretty from the ocean, and Link found himself half-dozing as he stared up at them…

'_Do you see the really bright one, just a little to the east and north of you?' _'Navi' suddenly asked, and Link looked up to the sky, nodding. _'That's the star for the ancient Sage of Light. Do you know who that was?' _

The hero shook his head, a little confused at what brought this up.

'_Hm. Well, that was Rauru. You've heard of the Hero of Time's seven year slumber, right?' _his guide asked, and Link smiled, whispering a very, very quiet "yes". _'Rauru was the first one that came to see him when the, um, hero woke up. This Sage guy was the one who told him everything that'd happened, and told him that he was destined for something greater.' _

Link stared up at the heavens in awe. "…And the Hero of Time just accepted it all? Just like that?"

Surprisingly, 'Navi' laughed. _'He wasn't as docile as you seem to think. He was certainly confused, and it's said that Rauru had to repeat himself at least a dozen times. But… after a while, yes. The Hero of Time just nodded his head, and looked to the sword he'd pulled from its pedestal. Because, whether or not the stories told of this… he had someone to save, too.' _

"That was the princess, right?" Link whispered, quietly enough that the boat didn't hear.

'_Yup. He wanted to save the princess.' _

It was silent for a moment—nothing could be heard but the water lapping against the boat and the wind hurrying the sail along. "…Seems like an awful lot of trouble for someone that he'd barely met."

'Navi' laughed again. _'Well, I know that the history books seem adamant about keeping this part out, but the Hero of Time had a crush on Princess Zelda.' _

Link looked confused for a moment. "…Well, I guess I can understand that part, but why do the history books keep that part out?"

'_Let's just say that her father wasn't exactly happy that some kid from a far-away forest was trying to court his daughter, and tried to keep them apart. But, unfortunately for him, this was the Hero of Time. He'd saved Hyrule countless times, and the people had banded with their hero. The politicians and the King were furious, but… in the end, it was the peoples' choice.' _

It was quiet again, and the Hero of Winds digested that information. "Well, what about the princess? Did she love him, too?"

'Navi' snorted. _'Well, I should hope so. She stuck with him until…'_

"Until what?" Link pressed, sitting up just slightly against the sides of the boat.

'_Until the end,' _his guide said slowly, and Link looked further into the stars.

It was silent for a little while, and the hero had gotten the distinct feeling that story-time was over. For some reason, his guide had seemed almost… sad… because of the legend. And even though Link didn't really know much about 'Navi', he didn't want to see his guide sad.

"It'll be alright, 'Navi'," Link whispered, smiling into the heavens. "Whatever happened, it'll be okay."

His guide didn't reply, but the hero knew that 'Navi' had heard.

000

The Hero of Time gave a small smile to the boy on the screen in front of him. He knew that the kid couldn't see it, but… well, he had a feeling that the kid could feel it, anyways. Link leaned gently against the wall, still staring at the screen.

He tossed the Ocarina of Time in the air a few times, and caught it a final time before holding it up to his mouth.

Zelda's Lullaby drifted through the screen, and Link saw the hero slowly drift off to sleep. It was a lullaby, after all…

**XXX**

**I'm so insanely hyper right now. I tried to finish this last night, I really did, but I was dead-tired. And don't worry, you won't see Link get variously harmed too much more in this story. I'll save those for one-shots—I've realized recently that it doesn't really make this story more fun to read and that I should focus more on, oh, I don't know… the plot? **

**And quick question, guys—should I re-do the beginning? I've been debating adding a few more chapters that add a little more of a lead-in. It seems kind of abrupt, looking back…**

**By the way, you all need to check out Time Quill's profile. Like, right now. He writes some insanely funny stuff.**

'**Till next time, Read 'n Review!**


	13. Tower of the Gods

**I… whoa. I have reviews! I never thought that this story would even have more than one person that reads every new chapter, so to see so many reviews? It's like some kind of dream come true. So, just for you guys, I'm posting this chapter early. So, thank you to each and every one of you guys—you officially rock.**

**So, disclaimer. If I owned Legend of Zelda, I wouldn't be getting so happy about reviews—I'd be getting a paycheck and several ticked off fans no matter what I did with the next game. **

**XXX**

'_Alright, kid. Wake up,' _'Navi' said, but, of course, the Hero of Winds was still asleep. _'You're almost to the __Eastern Triangle__ Island.' _

No response. A few minutes passed. The boat was right on course with the island, and the King of Red Lions rammed into it with an undignified _thump!_

Link startled awake as the boat jerked violently, and he quickly found himself thrown against the back of the boat. When the boat-king settled, he slowly sat up, squinting his eyes against the sunlight.

"Why didn't you wake me?" he asked grumpily, nowhere near happy about being woken up so roughly.

'_You really need to learn to sleep lighter,' _'Navi' said with a laugh, and somehow, with the birds overhead and the statue in front of him—and without a predator in sight—Link found himself unable to stay angry for long.

The King of Red Lions, thinking that Link was talking to him, turned his head around. "My apologies, boy. You're always so quiet; I hadn't even realized you were asleep."

The hero just gave an awkward smile, and the boat seemed to take it as an acceptance to his apology. "That aside, I suggest you place the last remaining stone in the statue's awaiting arms and await the gods' test."

The look on Link's face clearly communicated, 'Say what?'.

'…_Um… I haven't the faintest idea. I thought you were just supposed to return those pearls to their rightful pedestals…' _his guide awkwardly supplied, and the hero nearly face-palmed.

The King of Red Lions looked at the boy for a moment, then it seemed to dawn on him that he hadn't explained anything to the boy. "My apologies again, Hero. I thought that all intentions were clear… but I believe that the second part of your quest will be revealed when you replace the pearls. I do not know what Jabun mean by that, though…" the King said, half to himself, and Link raised an eyebrow suspiciously at the boat, but sighed, deciding to trust the King.

He jumped from the boat and onto the dry land—only possible because he'd managed to ram into the island. Yawning, he climbed up onto the next platform and crawled up to the statue with the mark of the remaining pearl. It was the one that the Great Deku Tree had given him in return for saving Makar…

The statue immediately began to pulse, casting a green light, even in the brightness of morning.

The light intensified, and the hero suddenly realized that it was similar to the light-pulses that bombs sent off when they were about to explode.

'_What are you waiting for?' _'Navi' asked, suddenly urgent. _'Run!'_

And just as the light was getting more and more rapid, Link did. He hopped as quick as he could off of the platform and onto the land below it, cautiously covering his head.

…Nothing happened for nearly a minute. Incredulously, the hero got up, a hand on his sword, and got back onto the ledge, standing directly in front of the statue.

'_That's weird… I thought for sure that it was going to blow—' _

A sudden explosion rocketed, throwing Link into the air, temporarily deafening him with how extremely loud it was, and suddenly he was soaring over the Great Sea, unable to even fish out his Wind Waker to guide his direction.

He was pretty sure that his scream could be heard over the entire region.

000

"Link!" the Hero of Time was suddenly screaming, hands pressed against the screen so hard that he thought it might break. He'd been wrong, so wrong, and now…

Without even realizing what he was doing, he was digging his fingers nearly through the screen, and he nearly cried, helplessly, when he realized that there was a tower rising from the ocean.

…A tower that happened to be in the boy's flight path.

His hands pushed forward, forward… and suddenly, they were met with more resistance than he thought there could ever be. The Hero of Time was forced backwards and landed hard against the opposite wall, and suddenly, he was aware of the boy bearing the same fate.

The Hero of Winds slammed face-first into the tower, but… strangely, although he fell limply down into the ocean, he didn't seem to have broken every bone in his body, like Link had feared. Maybe he'd done it, after all…

Shaking, the Hero of Time stood, walking back over to the screen, where he silently cursed Far ore, the King of Red Lions, and more than anything, himself, for not seeing sooner that the statue was going to explode.

000

The Hero of Winds was vaguely aware of slamming harder than he thought possible into a sudden surface that he was sure hadn't been there only seconds before.

Link's head struck the stone surface first, and the ringing in his ears from the blast only seemed to get worse. He didn't even bounce off of the tower—he smacked into it and slowly slid down the tower and into the ocean.

The hero was vaguely aware of the sea suddenly surrounding him, and although his head was spinning, he managed to swim back towards the surface. There was no one in sight.

'_Are you okay?' _'Navi' asked, his tone suggesting that he was practically screaming, but surprisingly, Link found it oddly hard to hear.

"My head hurts…" he mumbled, swimming as hard as he could to find something he could grab onto. "And it's kind of hard to…" he trailed off, suddenly going under, and it seemed that his guide could guess what he'd been about to say.

'_There's a very shallow shelf just to your left. You can probably sit on that for a little while… A-And rest your head.' _Link was vaguely aware of the barely-suppressed panic hiding in his guide's voice.

"What?" the hero said, not liking the blood that dripped from his nose. He carefully held up a sleeve to it in an effort to stop it, but it appeared the damage had already been done. He let out an upset sigh. "You were worried or something?"

'_Oh, no,' _'Navi' said, sarcasm dripping from every word. _'I just had to sit back and watch as the kid I'm supposed to be helping gets blasted into a tower at least a mile away!' _

Link raised an eyebrow, not moving his sleeve away from his nose. "Well, I'm… fine," he said cautiously, slowly examining his arms and legs and torso. "At least, I think so."

'_No, you're not as okay as you seem to think… A fairy or something would do you good right now, I just… I just wish that…' _

"Navi?" the hero asked after a moment.

'_Yeah?'_

"Shut up and take deep breaths," Link said with a smirk. "Seriously. Some of my grandma's soup will probably help me in no time flat."

His guide was silent for a moment, and to the hero's relief, he heard 'Navi's breathing slow. _'…You think so? I mean, I know there's magic in it and all, but how can you be sure…?' _

Link shrugged. "Well, it seems to be kind of a cure-all at my village, and people have it whenever they get sick _or_ hurt." He looked to the distance, blinking at the sunlight. "And, plus, I'm hungry anyways."

'_R-Right,' _'Navi' said, stumbling over his words. _'Dangit, I should've… I should've made you eat dinner last night, or at least breakfast this morning…' _

"What?" the hero asked, incredulous. "And not have as much for whatever danger I'm going to have to face in here? Pfft. No, man. Besides, I wasn't really hungry on the boat, anyways. With her soup, I'm usually fine for at least a day."

'_So, you promise you'll be okay…?' _

"Well, duh. When have I ever been... you know, un-fine?" Link joked, getting out the soup and drinking almost half of it in one swig. The blood from his nose almost instantly stopped, and the ringing in his ears died down to a more manageable level."Ah… that's better."

'_Un-fine isn't a word,' _'Navi' said, forcing out an awkward chuckle, _'And what about yesterday?' _

"What about yesterday?" the hero asked, crossing his arms and looking in the opposite direction.

'_Uh huh…' _his guide said, smirking. But the moment was too happy, and 'Navi' decided to let it go. _'That arrogance's gonna cost you one day, y'know. But for now… I'm just glad you're okay.' _

"Me too." Link smiled. Really, wasn't it as simple as that?

…

A few moments later, the King of Red Lions could be seen sailing toward him as fast as he could, meeting the hero at the entrance of the tower. Link gripped onto the edge for a moment, then braced himself and hopped off.

"Are you all right, boy?" the boat asked, eyes wild. "I saw the explosion, and then you flying through the air…" the King looked down to the ground for a moment, but when he looked back up, Link was smiling, waving off the boat's worry.

"I must ask your forgiveness. I did not know what would happen, but when the statue started to give off that light, I should've… I should've made you go down to me." The King closely its eyes, and regret showed on its wooden features.

But after a moment, he seemed to return to himself. "All that Jabun had told me was that this place—this tower—which the pearls of the goddesses have caused to appear, is a place that the gods of the ancient world prepared so they might test the courage of men."

Link gave him a blank look, so the King continued. "Only one who is able to overcome the trials that await here will be acknowledged by the gods to be a true hero. Only then will that hero be permitted to wield the power to destroy the great evil…"

Another blank look. The boat sighed. "Link, you are the only hero that these lands have known since the time of the legendary one. You must believe in your own courage, which has led you to triumph over the many hardships you have faced…"

The unwitting hero blushed, shaking his head to say that, _no, there must be some mistake, I'm no hero_, but the King gave him a soft smile. "And you must triumph once again, Hero, because you must overcome the challenge of the gods. You are the hero of this new world, but I will not force you to meet this challenge if you are not ready."

Link was silent for a moment, pondering the boat's words, but after a moment, he nodded. "I'll do it."

The boat nodded, and then they were sailing into the tower. Link had his motivation, his boat, his guide, and the ability to control the wind. He was fearless, after all, or at least giving it his best shot—how could he refuse?

…

The entrance was grand, and the first thing the hero noticed was a golden statue—he didn't know what it was supposed to even _be_ but at least it was shiny—spewed water, and it made the waves very choppy. Sailing forward would've been an issue, but thankfully, the King of Red Lions was in charge, not him. At any rate, they sailed closer to the statue, before the King spoke up.

"Which way, Hero? Left or right?" the boat sounded just about as clueless as the Link himself. The hero, however, just shrugged. It wasn't as if he'd ever been here before, after all…

'_It doesn't matter either way. Just choose one and get on with it—the sooner you're out of here, the better…' _

Link raised an eyebrow at 'Navi's impatience, but felt inclined to agree with him. "…Left?" he asked, shrugging again.

So left it was. The King of Red Lions forced his way against the current, and they slowly but surely made their way to walls that seemed weathered and battered in their age.

"Would you prepare the cannon?" the boat asked, and Link looked at him for a moment before realizing why, exactly, he was being asked to. The hero then hurriedly pulled out the cannon, wondering why on earth the tiny little sailboat hadn't been sunk long ago with its weight. It was quite heavy, after all, and held at least sixty-bombs at once.

Link lined up the cannon and one by one, the walls came down. With a sigh of relief, both hero and boat made their way to the entrance. …That was right about when the level of water dropped.

'_How does it do that?' _'Navi' suddenly asked, and the hero looked up. _'I mean, it's an open door to the ocean and everything. It can't possibly be altering the entire level of the sea, can it?' _

Link shrugged, then whispered, hoping that the boat wouldn't hear. "Does it really matter?"

'_Well, it might to local fishermen… but still. It's just… sometimes, it seems like logic and the very basics of physics get thrown out the window in these dang quests.' _

The hero laughed, hopping out of the boat when the water level finally rose again. "Well, I, for one, am grateful for it. I mean, how else was I supposed to survive getting slammed into two different towers without breaking my head open?"

'Navi' seemed to grumble something unintelligent, but Link just laughed and continued forward. The water-level was still high, so he swam over to the only platform he could see. Blues and greens and purples and golds seemed to surround a structure to his right, and he considered it curiously. There was a small indentation at the center, and he wondered at it for a moment.

But then the water went down again, and a staircase was revealed. The hero cheerily walked down it, seeing that there was a door on the other side of it, and he was about to slide it open…

…Right up until as a yellowish-orange Chu slid up through the floor.

"Heh. You'd think that the bad guy from the Forsaken Fortress would stop making these things. I mean, they're so cute that it's almost kind of sad to…" Link seemed to be at a loss for words right then, obviously uncomfortable with the word 'kill', "You know, end them and stuff."

But even as he said it, he got out his sword and charged at it. Suddenly, though, something jagged and yellow started to move over the top of its jelly surface.

'_Um… Kid? I don't really recommend doing that…' _

"Dude. It's blocking my path. I'm pretty sure I need to get rid of this before it jumps on top of me from behind, you know?" Link asked, raising an eyebrow to the sky.

Decidedly ignoring his guide, he slashed at the Chu. A sudden tingling sensation travelled up his arm and made his thoughts go fuzzy for a minute. "What… was that?" he asked, rubbing his head. Thankfully, even though it'd shocked him, his sword had still managed to cut open the jelly monster, and it had vanished into a puff of smoke.

'_It's called electricity. Or lighting. Or… something. I don't know what it is, exactly, except that it makes you feel really weird.'_

Link 'hmm'd at this for a moment, but then shrugged. Before he could consider what to do, another attacked him from behind.

"Farore!" the hero swore, the fuzzy feeling travelling from his spine to the rest of his body. "What'd I do deserve this?"

'_I know you kind of just got electrocuted and everything,' _'Navi' said, obviously exasperated, _'But you might want to get something to hit it from a distance or something… You know, to keep it from doing that __**again**__.' _

"…Right," Link said, searching the items he'd carried around for so long. The only things he could find that could do anything from a long distance were his grappling hook, Deku Leaf, and… his boomerang! He felt almost like slapping himself upside the head in annoyance, but chose, instead, to throw it as hard as he could against the lightning Chu.

It suddenly stopped moving towards him, but didn't vanish in smoke like he'd hoped it would do. So, of course, it was the most obvious thing in the world to hit it over and over again.

Unfortunately for the increasingly irate hero, it didn't seem to do anything. So, he threw the boomerang at it, yet again, harder than he probably should've, he charge at it with his sword.

"HYAAH!" the swordsman cried, and suddenly purple smoke was all around him, and the creature vanished. Link blinked, surveying the area until he found that there were no more of the creatures. "…I did it?" he said hesitantly, as if he was afraid of something abruptly breaking his victory.

But nothing came. (Well, at least, not at first.)

In his victory dance—he could just _hear_ 'Navi' facepalming in the background—he forgot about his boomerang, and it suddenly hit him in the back of the head.

'_I'd say that it was Karma, but I don't exactly know what you did to bring that on.' _'Navi' started to laugh, but Link was still half-elated by the thrill of victory to be mad.

"Yes, well, I suppose it's what I have to deal with, seeing as I'm supposedly some new hero to this era. The gods have to find some way to make me seem extra mortal…" Link thoughtfully tapped a finger to his chin, but then the water-level started to rise, and he swam over to the higher platform, right next to a few curious statues.

'_That… makes a weird amount of sense. I mean, it also kind of explains why you seem to get hurt and sick so often. Well,' _'Navi' added, with what seemed to be a smirk, _'You know, aside from your total and complete lack of training. You really need to work on your sword skills, and I'm making it a personal goal that you learn the spin-attack before the end of the week.'_

Link groaned, and after a moment or two, the water level sunk again. The hero hurried down the steps, not wanting to have to wait for the next passage of water. "Do I have to? I don't think I'll even use it that much…"

'_Oh, trust me,' _his guide said, indifferent to the hero's pleas. _'You'll need it. …Every hero has at some point, after all.' _

The door was locked. Link huffed a sigh, then turned around and ran up the stairs. "Figures…" he mumbled, thoroughly irritated.

'_Huh. I think there's supposed to be a treasure-chest somewhere around here…' _

"Yeah?" Link asked, curious. "Where is it?"

'_Not sure,' _'Navi' said, and the hero sighed, walking around. _'Just look around for stuff that you think was put near you, almost too conveniently.' _

"Isn't that kind of paranoid?" the hero asked, raising an eyebrow.

'_I guess it is… But everything seems to be some kind of blasted puzzle, doesn't it?' _

"Makes sense," Link nodded, shrugging. After a moment, he glanced behind him. "Hm. These pots seem to have something wooden in them…"

Just then, the water moved back down, revealing two unlit torches.

"I guess I could use the wood from the pots and the already lit lantern post thingies to burn the ones at the bottom…" He mumbled, trying to calculate an accurate plan.

'_Ah-ha!' _'Navi' cheered, and the hero rolled his eyes. _'You see? Things work way too conveniently here. But it might have something to do with the fact that this tower was made to test your determination.' _

Link carefully picked up one of the sticks and cautiously lit it, using the already flaming torch. There, he waited for the water level to rise then fall again, and sprinted down to the bottom.

As soon as he lit both torches, a treasure chest appeared on the ledge next to the staircase. Link walked, wide-eyed, over to it, and carefully opened it.

'…_Great. A joy pendant,' _his guide mumbled, but the hero just grinned, cheekily shoving it into his spoils bag. _'What are you doing? It's a necklace with a butterfly on it!' _

"But it's pretty, and… I dunno, Aryll might want one or something," Link shrugged, non-committed, and 'Navi' let out an exasperated sigh.

'_Fine… Keep it… just don't let anyone look through your stuff, okay?' _

"Why would I do that?" the hero asked, disgusted. But he didn't wait for his guide to say anything more, and immediately turned, heading straight for the room at the top of the staircase.

A floating skull immediately met him, and it seemed to be on fire. Link nearly squeaked in surprise when it turned towards him, forcing him to stumble backwards.

'_Okay, kid. Think. It's on fire and it's the fire that's making it float. So, what do you want to do to disarm it?' _'Navi' asked urgently.

"Um… put the fire out?" Link suggested, feeling silly as he fled backwards, managing to trip over his own two feet more than once, but thankfully not falling down.

'_Good. Now, how can you put the fire out?' _

"With water?" the hero squeaked, searching his items. "Wait, I don't have any water… Um, with a fan?"

'_Good job, kid. Now, do you have anything you can use as a fan?' _

Link searched a moment, the skull gaining on him, and suddenly pulled out his Deku Leaf. He shook it out as if it were a blanket, and the flaming skull dropped from the sky.

The hero immediately slashed at it with his sword, and it turned to smoke. He breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled up at the sky.

'_Okay. That was… fun,' _his guide said, seeming to smirk. _'You seem to be learning to think before you just hack away at an enemy with a sword.' _

"And I'm not liking it at all. I mean, come on! First the electric one making me use a totally different weapon to… um, kill… it, and then, I have to seriously consider what I have before getting rid of that thing!" Link joked, feigning exasperation.

'_Pfft. Yeah. You might actually have to fight something challenging here!' _'Navi' laughed, and the hero walked over to the treasure-chest in the center of the room. He opened it, ignoring the bright light that seemed to radiate from the center—as usual—and stepped back, furrowing his eyebrows.

"…A compass to a map I don't have?" Link asked, puzzled. "What the heck?"

'_I dunno. I guess I'll just have to settle for your map, then, eh, hero? At least this'll work to help me find all the treasure-chests, though…' _

The hero shrugged, seeming to let it go. It was time to move on, after all.

When he walked back into the main hall, the water level had just started to rise, and Link counted his blessings. Granted, he had a feeling that he'd be soaking wet twenty-four-seven in this dungeon, but as he got over the ledge and hopped back into his boat, he found that he didn't mind so much.

He wasn't a good swimmer—not by any stretch of the imagination—but at least he was only covering a lot of short distances. As it was, whenever he tried to swim for more than a minute, he ended up nearly choking and meeting the sea-floor up close and personal.

But, thankfully, the King of Red Lions seemed to have picked up on that in the short time he'd known him—Link could accurately guess that the boat had known since he'd first found him, floating unconsciously on the ocean's surface. So the King took it easy on him, and although it was slow work, he drove the boy around wherever he needed to go.

"Which room, boy?" the King asked, and Link shrugged. "The one further up or the one nearest to you?"

"Um…" Link started, scratching the back of his head. "Nearest?" No need to waste more time, after all.

No sooner than he'd said that, the ocean level dropped again, and the hero was getting out and swimming the short distance to the platform. When he entered, the water level was still low, so he had the misfortunate of meeting another one of the electric Chus.

"Ugh… not more of those," he mumbled, fishing for his boomerang. Once he'd dug it out, he threw it at the Chu, and then charged at it while it was still star-struck. It vanished into a puff of smoke that dissipated when the tide came in once more. Sighing with relief, the hero sheathed his sword.

The water level rose once more, and Link struggled his way to the surface.

He panicked a moment, because the water was rising fast and his clothes were heavy, but he found his way to the surface quickly enough and clung to a box that seemed to be able to float.

'…_You can't swim that well, can you?' _'Navi' asked, not exactly gently, but not as harshly as he asked some of his other questions. If anything, it simply sounded… blunt.

"Well, no. Is that a problem?" Link was just a tinge annoyed, but more than anything, he was trying to get to the top of the block.

'_Sorry. Just kind of… strange. I mean, you live on an island…' _

"Well, I didn't really like to swim much there. Everything was, you know…" He awkwardly managed to pull himself into a sitting position onto the crate, and it carried him, even as the water rose and fell with the tide. "I don't know. I've just never been too good at swimming. I mean, I never really had a reason to learn, you know?"

'Navi' made a brief 'hmm'ing sound, and Link looked away.

"Um… So… is there anything that's worth anything in here?" he asked, scratching the back of his head, his hands brushing against his sword, still sheathed from his last battle.

'_Well, without a map it's hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure there's something to your… um, right, I think? Right-center.' _'Navi' seemed a bit flustered, so Link just shrugged and got out his bombs. He threw one carefully onto the ledge in front of the wall. It exploded, but thankfully the hero dived into the water on time.

…Unfortunately, by the time he regained his bearings, the water had already gone down again.

'_Hey, are you okay?' _his guide asked after a moment. _'I mean, you don't happen to be afraid of explosions or anything… right?' _

Link shrugged it off. "I'm fine," he said abruptly, hopping back onto the box. "I just think that it'd be kind of silly to, you know, get blasted into a wall twice in one day."

The water level rose after a very still moment, and Link hopped onto the ledge. A treasure chest was on the far side, and he opened it with a sigh of relief. In it was the dungeon map.

'_Oh, hey! We're not flying blind now, are we?' _

"Eh. You seemed to know what you were doing," the hero replied cynically. "I kind of just hope it's waterproof…"

'…_Huh. You're right. Well, the rest of your items seem pretty safe… I mean, don't get me wrong, you look totally and completely waterlogged—' _

"Gee, thanks," Link interjected, rolling his eyes.

'_But the rest of your stuff seems… halfway okay. I mean, your boomerang is wet from when you got it out, but, humor me a second, will you?' _'Navi' asked, and Link raised an eyebrow. _'Get out your grappling hook.' _

The hero did. It was dry.

"…Hnh. Figures…" He shrugged, trying not to worry too much about it, and quickly stashed it before he had to jump back down into the water.

'_I guess Farore likes you. Or something,' _his guide said, the last part a little too quickly. But Link just nodded, debating whether or not he wanted to have a harsh landing on the solid ground or a soft landing and have to tread water for a while.

The water level suddenly rose, and laziness got the better of him. Link waited for it to pass, then jumped from the ledge, taking the shock in his knees.

A few electric Chus were blocking his path, but he just jumped over them as quickly as he could and walked through the door, more grateful than usual to have his boat waiting for him.

**XXX**

**I'm seriously sorry for lying to you guys last time. I said that I'd ease up on Link for a little while… but seriously, guys; did you want me to totally change the plot? I hadn't considered that he'd have to get slammed into a freaking tower the very next chapter. But I'm being totally honest now—I will not allow Link to get seriously harmed until, you know, the Boss Battle. I'll leave him alone until then and just settle for him to have to get electrocuted once or twice. …Can you tell that I really, really hated those dang Chus? They totally shocked me from behind before I even saw them!**

**Read and Review—and please, check out my profile. You might find some other fics that you like. **

**(Tetra: Yeah! Like all of those shameless oneshots of me acting all cutesy with Link! It's… totally humiliating, and I refuse to be treated like that!**

**Malon: I dunno… I like some of her oneshots. **

**Tetra: …Look, farm lady person, I don't even know who you are, but from what I've gathered, SamSal seems to think of you as some alternate universe love interest for OoT Link. But, seriously, have you even read the stuff she writes? I don't think SamSal could write a story where Link doesn't manage to hurt himself. **

**Malon: *glares daggers* SamSal, you will suffer for hurting my beloved.)**

**Huh. I'm getting this sudden feeling of foreboding… But shameless plugging aside, Read and Review! And see you next time! **


	14. Rainbows and Annoying Water Levels

**Fifty reviews. FIFTY! I'm so happy I could honestly cry. Thank you guys for your support—it means the world to me! **

**Disclaimer: Honestly, people—if I owned Legend of Zelda, Tingle would have been banished to the 'scrapped characters' bin by Shigeru Miyamoto's desk, and this story might actually have had some chance of being canon. **

**XXX **

'_How you're managing to lift statues at least two times as heavy as you over your head… I'll never know,' _'Navi' said, and Link just laughed.

"Are you..." he started, grunting at the weight of said giant statue, "...Implying that I'm weak or somethin'?"

'_What? Insinuating that an eleven-year-old boy isn't strong enough to lift something that's at least two hundred pounds? Never!' _his guide joked, and the hero just rolled his eyes.

"I thought so," Link said, releasing the statue onto the weight-sensitive pad with a groan. The gate slid up, and he wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead.

The hero walked forward cautiously, already awaiting the attack that was sure to come. Sure enough, the moment he stepped foot inside the room, an electrical Chu popped up from the ground. Link was just grateful that it was near the staircase and at least ten feet away from him.

He hurriedly dug out his boomerang and chucked it at the monster, and its eyes practically became stars. Link rushed it, and the jelly almost immediately splattered onto his hair.

He gave nothing in particular a momentary glare, but shrugged it off. …There were worse things in life than having jelly mix in with his hair. And, besides, he'd already spent an uncomfortable amount of time soaking wet in this dungeon, so he didn't even really mind.

'_Nice job, kid. You learn quick,' _'Navi' said, and Link looked up in momentary surprise. His guide didn't often compliment him for things as small as that. But it wasn't as if he minded.

"Eh, no big deal," the hero said, suddenly finding great interest in his fingernails. But, bravado aside, he was genuinely pleased, and his guide seemed to notice.

'_Well, you might want to get down there, then, 'Hero'. The ladder's there for a reason, you know.' _

Link smirked. "You're totally jealous of my mad Chu-defeating powers. Face it, Navi—my machoness is simply too much for you to handle."

'…_I'm sure,' _'Navi' retorted, for some reason finding this incredibly funny. _'But, seriously. Down the ladder. I don't like it here—it seems… dangerous.' _

"Well, the forest was dangerous," the hero was quick to point out as he hesitantly climbed down the ladder, "And you didn't say anything about that…"

'_So, if the forest was 'bad', and I didn't feel the need to tell you, but I'm telling you about this, what does that tell you about this situation?' _his guide asked, raising what seemed to be a non-viewable eyebrow.

"Good point," Link said, glancing around him. Boxes were scattered around the floor, and there was a funny looking pipe sticking out from the ground…

Water then started rising all around him, and the hero flailed to the surface, clutching to a box for support.

'_Ehm, yeah, I probably should've warned you about that… but your expression was more than worth it.' _'Navi' laughed, and Link's expression matched the one he wore whenever Aryll would replace all the oranges in his house with lemons and not tell anyone. Needless to say, he was not happy—moreover, he resembled a volcano, getting ready to spew lava.

Before he could go off into a rant, though, 'Navi' interjected. _'Ah-ah-ah. Come on, man, are you really gonna yell at the guy who's telling you that this room is insanely easy? I mean, all you have to do is move that tiny little box over there to the top of that switch, and wait for the water level to drop and rise a few times, then walk across.' _

"Walk across on what?" Link asked gruffly, swimming over to the ladder. "Air?"

The water suddenly went down, revealing a weight-activated switch, and his face was suddenly tinged with pink. "Oh."

Link hurriedly moved the box over to the switch, then climbed up the ladder as fast as he could. He didn't beat the water, though, and ended up waiting for the next cycle.

A rainbow bridge suddenly appeared, and though it looked a bit girlish, Link was first and foremost an Outsetter, not a hero, so he didn't care if 'Navi' felt the imminent need to laugh at him. Besides—he knew that the 'skirt' looked good on him, anyways.

…Well, he wasn't going to tell anyone that, but it was the thought that counted. Confidence was key, after all.

Link carefully picked up the giant statue and was about to cross the bridge when it disappeared. The water had risen and moved the box's position, but thankfully, when the water moved back down, the box settled back on the motion-detecting pad, and the hero scurried across the bridge.

Granted, it was a little difficult to move under the weight of the very, _very_, heavy statue, but he managed to have a few seconds left over on the bridge when he reached the other side.

Unfortunately, when he got to the door, he quickly found that the statue was too tall to fit in it comfortably, so he ended up dragging it half-sideways through the doorframe.

When he reached the outside area again, Link decided that it was definitely too heavy to put back on top of his head, so he just kept dragging it towards the pit that he was supposed to place it in.

'_I don't think the statue's ever been carried like that before,' _'Navi' said, laughing. _'But if it works, it works, right, kid?' _

"You officially have the weirdest sense of humor that I've ever heard," Link muttered, letting out a grunt of exertion when he finally reached the tiled floor of the statue's original resting place. Unfortunately, he miscalculated where he was supposed to step, and ended up tripping over the groove where the statue was supposed to go.

'_Nice,' _his guide said a tinge too cheerily for the hero's benefit, but Link just groaned and sat up again.

The statue was currently leaning against the railing, which was, thankfully, tall enough to have prevented the giant statue from toppling into the water. _That _would've been a pain to get out. Link went to the side and shoved it upright, and somehow, he managed to catch it before it toppled to the ground.

'_Did you somehow manage to tick off gravity in the last couple minutes or something?' _'Navi' joked, and the hero rolled his eyes.

"I think it's just jealous of my incredibly good luck."

'_Luck? Dude, not sure if you noticed this, but you seem to be able to draw the attention of every single monster within a fifteen foot radius.' _

Link was quiet a moment, pouting up at nothing in particular. "No… more like a five-foot radius."

'_They still seek you out.' _

Link hummed briefly, but then used all his might to half-drag the statue into the right place. It slid into the groove in the ground, and he sighed in relief.

Almost immediately, it started to glow, and the hero walked over to the ledge and suddenly felt a rumbling off in the distance. He peered off in the general direction it was coming from and saw that a gate he didn't even know was there was suddenly lowering.

He was careful to keep his balance during the rumbling, and thankfully, he kept from falling into the water.

"So…" Link started to say, obviously disappointed. "Does this mean that I have to fight in even more rooms in this dungeon?"

'_I'd say so, yeah.' _'Navi' said, and the hero pouted. _'Hey, don't look so glum, kid. You'll be done before you know it!' _

The hero grumbled something incoherent, then hopped from the ledge—onto the blessedly dry side—and went around to find his boat. Thankfully, the King of Red Lions was close enough for him to just step in, instead of having to swim at all.

'_Heh. You really don't like to swim, do you?' _his guide asked, and Link nodded, lazily leaning back and putting one leg over the other.

000

The Hero of Time frowned a little, leaning against the wall and putting his hands behind his head. The boy was doing well, that was for sure, but he had no clue why Link… er, _younger_ Link… didn't like to swim. Or, more accurately, couldn't swim. He'd seen the kid attempting it here and there, but it was in the open ocean, and quite frankly, the Hero of Winds only seemed to know the dog-paddle.

…And even that was sloppy.

But still, for someone that didn't really know what he was doing, the younger Link was surprisingly good at most things he tried. Farore knew that most twelve-year-old boys would've already cracked under the pressure…

Still, sometimes 'Navi' couldn't help but worry for the kid. He still had to defeat the monsters, and younger Link's reluctance to use the word 'kill' certainly showed that he wasn't as okay with everything as one might assume. But for now, he seemed fine. If anything, the adventure was slowly forcing him to face the fears he'd had since he was a little kid.

It didn't mean that he knew what he was doing, though. And it certainly didn't mean that it was making the boy any less clumsy.

The Hero of Time laughed quietly as the kid nearly tipped over the King of Red Lions in an effort to stay away from the fountain of water. The King gave younger Link an intense glare, and the boy just gave an awkward chuckle at the boat before putting his hand back on the rudder and trying, despite himself, to steer the boat correctly.

Some time later, the young hero managed to steer awkwardly to his next destination.

The Hero of Time bit back a smile as the King of Red Lions chewed the boy out for scratching the paint job, but they both knew it was futile—it could very well take years to teach the kid how to parallel park.

000

The door opened, revealing a ledge that led to a very deep, very wide, very long, chasm that contained several boxes. Link jumped down to it, giving a cry of exertion, then looked around at some of the boxes. Most of them turned out to be large crates that seemed rather heavy, and the hero pushed one as hard as he could, but he found that it was slow work.

It was then that he found out that, like most of the other rooms, water would rise up from the floor.

"I don't like this place," he grumbled, doggy-paddling back to the ladder.

'_Yeah, well, something tells me that you'll hate this place even more after about fifteen minutes.' _

"…Why?"

…

Half an hour passed.

"I HATE THIS PLACE!" the Hero of Winds shouted, taking a deep breath before the water, again, started to rise all around him. He'd been moving crates around ever since he'd suddenly realized that he needed to make a path across the room, and that had been ten minutes ago. Before that, he'd simply stumbled around blindly, constantly wondering what on Outset he was supposed to be doing.

Currently, he was soaking wet and cold to the core. It was the Tower of the Gods, Din burn it, why couldn't they have heated the water? They seemed to be able to defy all the other laws of physics!

'_Alright, kid, I say it's time you took a break,' _'Navi' decided, and Link took a deep breath, nodding and swimming back to the ladder. He climbed up it, nearly falling off because, not only was the ladder slippery, but his hands were, too, and the water that lapped against it didn't help, either.

"What am I even supposed to do?" the hero muttered, laying down tiredly at the ledge. "This is absolutely impossible…"

'Navi' seemed to shrug. _'You said it yourself—almost fifteen minutes ago, might I add—that you need to make a path across so you can run the fire to the other side and light the torches. Just see if you can estimate how far you need to jump, and then move the boxes around accordingly.' _

Link grumbled something incoherent in return, before sitting up and staring down at the puzzle. "What do you think I've been trying to do?"

'_Look, kid. All I'm asking is that you try to jump across them again, and then make the necessary corrections as you go. If something's too close or too far for you to comfortably jump, fix it.' _

The hero looked at the floor for a moment, then heaved a sigh and jumped away from the ledge. He landed hard on the ground and took the shock in his knees before climbing on top of the box and jumping to the next one.

It was a decent distance. Link gave a sigh of relief and jumped to the next one. This one, however, was too far away, and before he had a chance to correct it, the water rose.

The hero just sat on top of the box and waited for gravity to drag him back up.

He took a deep breath when his head passed the surface, and tried to force away the barely-suppressed annoyance that was just itching to break free. He managed, though, and closed his eyes as calmly as he could.

Before he knew it, the water had lowered again, and he moved the box where it was supposed to go.

With a sigh, Link hopped onto the top and jumped to the next one. Pause. Move around boxes. Resume. Repeat, then repeat again. He decided that it was all too methodical, but after a painful fifteen minutes, all was completed, and the world, as far as he was concerned, had been set right.

The hero plopped down on the ledge to the other side and very nearly sighed in relief.

'_See? Was that so hard?' _

"It killed me. Can't you see the blood?" Link asked, rolling his eyes.

He watched as the water went up again, and quickly skipped across to—finally—get the wood needed for lighting the torch.

He hopped back over the water once, lit the actual lantern that he needed for the other two, and waited for the water to cycle again. When he'd, again, _finally_, completed his mini-quest and lit the torches, a treasure chest appeared.

Link held out the key in victory for a moment, a cheesy grin plastered onto his face.

'_You got the small key!' _'Navi' said, using his best 'announcer's voice'. _'You can use it to open locked doors, but you can only use it in this dungeon!' _

Link almost immediately doubled up in immature laughter, nearly toppling into the water. "Okay, I admit, _that _time it was funny."

'_Mm-hmm. I have a feeling that somewhere in the Sacred Realm, people are facepalming.' _

The hero snickered, hopping onto each floating box until he reached the other side. He nearly tripped over his own two feet when the water started to drop, but thankfully he leapt extra-far and managed to catch himself at the ledge.

"Worth it. Totally, unmistakably, worth it."

…

Link hopped inside the King of Red Lions and smiled to himself, a random moment of giddiness taking over his mood. Could he help it if he smiled for no real reason, sometimes? Could he help it if, somehow, even though the water all around him was annoying and he had no clue what he was supposed to be doing, he knew that he was in the _Tower of the (_Freaking_) Gods_ and Din be burnt if he'd sit around moping the whole time.

The hero and his boat cruised back over to the other side of the room, thankful that they could actually open the locked door now. Link hopped onto the top of the railing and sat there for a moment, not allowing even his feet to touch the water, and jumped down when the water receded.

He saw a clump of electrical Chus gathering some ten feet away from him, slowly moving in his direction, and he half-sprinted towards the door, only slowing to dig out the small key.

Link fumbled with the lock a moment, and gave a huff of disapproval when he saw that the key actually _broke_ inside the lock, therefore not allowing him to reuse the key.

'Navi' seemed to notice his disappointment. _'Don't worry, kid. Happens to the best of us.' _

The hero nodded, but hurried inside anyways, hyper-aware of the Chus slowly moving towards him.

Inside it was rather similar to the other rooms, aside from the two very high up ledges that were in the center of the room. Link stared at them for a moment, then seemed to notice the Chus that were sliding—sludging?—in his direction.

He got out his boomerang and almost laughed as the first one got stars in its eyes. One slash of his sword later, it exploded into a cloud of purple mist. Three more quickly took its place. But Link did the same to them, and the room was quickly emptied of the monsters.

Almost immediately, a rainbow stairway appeared over his head, and Link looked up in surprise.

"How did that even happ—!" he started to say, but was cut off by the water that, you guessed it, suddenly rose above his head. The hero struggled his way to the surface, but it was decidedly more difficult than he'd have liked, seeing as he'd forgotten to put his sword away. Still, he forced his way up, and Link breathlessly bobbed his head above the water.

The hero managed to sheathe his sword, though he very nearly went back under. But by that time, the water had already started to drop, and he found his feet touching the floor.

"…Have I ever told you just how much I hate water?" Link asked casually, frowning at the room. He started to walk up the stairs and stopped halfway. "But seriously. What I was about to ask was how in Farore's name does this..." he gestured to the staircase, "...even happen? It's just plain freaky! I mean, the other rooms had weight or motion pads or something like that, but this? It appears after I beat all the weird monster things. It doesn't make sense!"

'Navi' seemed to shrug, though, as always, it was impossible to see, mainly because he was little more than a disembodied voice with an odd since of humor. _'Eh. You're in the Tower of the Gods. You should probably be expressing thanks right now, unless you want to anger them.' _

"…Huh?" Link asked, thoroughly confused. "What, are they watching me or something?"

'_Uh… Forget I said that, kid. For now, just stop using Farore as a cuss word. I think that She might start punishing you for that.' _

The hero paled a little, nodding silently as he continued up the stairs. At the top was a statue with a glowing bottom, and he sighed, realizing he'd have to carry it. Ah, well, he decided. At least he didn't have to carry it _up_ the stairs.

This one was just as heavy as the last, but it was a little easier because gravity seemed to be working with him. When he finally made it past the water—which continuously rose and fell—he came back upon the platform and gingerly placed it in its spot. It immediately started to glow, and another rumbling started.

The fountain stopped spewing water, and Link nearly jumped for joy.

"I'm glad _that's_ over," he said, grinning widely as he made his way over to the King of Red Lions.

'_Um… check your map,' _was all that his guide said in return, and, raising an eyebrow, the hero complied.

"You mean I have to do all this?" the hero exclaimed, nearly fainting as he saw the many rooms he'd have to explore.

'_I'd say so. Really, it isn't that much longer than your time at Dragon Roost or the Kokiri Forest.' _

"…Kokiri what?" Link asked quietly, suddenly aware of the boat that was steering the ship as he pouted.

'_Sorry… Did I say Kokiri Forest? I meant the Forbidden Woods. Heh… Heh heh…' _'Navi's words died down to an awkward chuckle, and the hero raised an eyebrow.

"Hm. You seem to mix up a lot of words…" Link remarked, but didn't say much more on the matter. He didn't want to push his guide, after all—having 'Navi' shout out directions every three seconds would be a living nightmare.

'_Eh. You seem to be forgetting that, ahem, I'm a guide, after all. I have to be well-informed.' _

The hero raised an eyebrow, momentarily comprehending that 'Navi' seemed to have dropped the whole, 'guide to all the Links' act. He was glad, but… a little confused, nonetheless. But it wasn't as if he thought he'd get an answer, so he was thankful that 'Navi' had even responded.

Without any more words, the hero and his boat, and the invisible guide -though only one of the pair could acknowledge him—sailed through the fountain's opening.

000

Zelda looked up from the manuscript she'd so earnestly been reading. A passage didn't quite make sense to her, so she placed the scroll back onto the table. Naroou glanced away from her own manuscript and at the ex-princess sitting in front of her.

"I… don't quite understand this," Zelda confessed, sliding the document to the Sage of Spirit. "Do you think you could uncover it's meaning?"

Naroou tentatively nodded her head, picking it up and studying it wordlessly for several minutes. After a while, she closed her eyes, apparently deep in thought.

"I believe it's what we've been looking for, Zelda," the sage said, smiling. "I don't understand a good portion of it, but, yes, I think… it's just what we needed to find."

Naroou made a motion for the ex-princess to come closer, and Zelda did, carefully sliding the chair over to the sage's side of the table. Naroou pointed to a few sentences near the middle of the paper, and the ex-princess nearly gasped in shock.

"You don't mean…?" she asked, eyes wide as she read and re-read the words.

"This is it."

Zelda nearly fainted. Thankfully, though, the tiniest remains of the Triforce of Wisdom—long since passed onto the next in line, but it had still blessed her with intelligence—acted, and she found herself slowly but surely deciphering what, exactly, the scroll was saying.

Now if only she could figure out what the prophecy meant when it started to talk about the "_Winds of Time_".

**XXX**

**Okay, so the chapter's just a smidgeon shorter than usual this time. But come on, guys—I gave you an extra chapter this week, and that one was on the long side. Surely this simply balances it out? (nudge-nudge, wink-wink?) **

**Ah, well. As promised, Link doesn't manage to get slaughtered, though I was ready to punch his lights out because this chapter was taking way too long to write. I mean, seriously, this writer's block is getting unbearable, but looking over the 50 reviews that you guys have given me really made me push through it. So, seriously, thanks, guys! It means a lot, and I hope you'll continue to review, because, as witnessed, it really does make me work harder. **

**So, yes, Read and Review? **

**And also check out my profile for the oneshots I write. They're lonely. I think I've written three in the last two weeks, and none of them got any reviews. They need some love. **

**;) See you next time! (And maybe, just maybe, Zelda and Naroou will figure out what those blasted scrolls mean! …What? Me? Encourage a cliff hanger? Psshaw.)**


	15. Honor and the Lack Thereof

"**Hello, Link, Hero of Time and guardian of the Next Hero here, and this is a Disclaimer—" the Hero of Time started to say, but was almost immediately cut off by his younger counterpart. **

"**Link!" the Hero of Winds shouted, glaring suddenly. "The readers don't know when that'll happen, and it's impolite to tease them! They're reviewing, after all!" **

**The elder of the two snickered, crossing his arms and sticking his tongue out at the boy. The Hero of Winds, however, just put a hand to his forehead, sighing theatrically. **

"**Sometimes I really wonder who's more mature, here…" **

**It was dead silent for a moment, aside from the quiet, 'AHEM' from the author, and the two main characters of this story suddenly pulled their act together and glanced back to the awaiting audience. **

"…**Right, um, so I'm 'Navi' and we've managed to persuade the author to let us do the disclaimer today." The Hero of Time turned to the younger boy, who eagerly grabbed the microphone. **

"**So, we don't belong to SamSal, mainly because that'd be illegal all over the world, and the Author doesn't approve of human trafficking," Link glanced at the paper again, stopping the monotone voice he'd been reading in for the last few sentences. "Ah… Wouldn't it be Hylian Trafficking?" **

**The Hero of Time laughed. "Either way, she doesn't approve, and besides, we work for Nintendo anyways, even if they think that it'd be some kind of paradox if we knew eachother." **

…

**Ahem. This is why you should get enough sleep, boys and girls. But with the disclaimer outta the way (hope you guys at least got a chuckle out of it), I hope you enjoy the next chapter of Guiding the Wind Waker! See you at the end of this chapter! **

**XXX**

The boat sailed gently to a nearby landing, and Link ran up the staircase and through the narrow corridor until he got to the single door it led to. He raised a hand to it, and it almost immediately slid open. It did little to take the edge off of his already-prominent nervousness.

'_Heh. Relax, kid—this'll be a cinch.'_

That was right about when Link took a step forward and nearly got his boot burned off by a laser beam coming from the top of a statue in the center of the room. Thankfully, the moment it touched his shoe, he hopped back to the relative safety of the door's entrance.

'…_Correction: This'll be a singe,' _'Navi' said with a snicker, and from the hero's expression, it didn't go over too well.

"Puns aside, I'd appreciate it if you'd tell me how to get past this thing," Link said impatiently, leaning against the wall and trying to cool off his foot. He slipped his boot off with a hiss and was immediately surprised at the amount of water that dumped out of it.

'_Huh. I'm kinda surprised you aren't already getting a blister from all that water…'_

The hero glared up at the sky, ignoring the simple fact that he _had _been feeling something constantly rub up against his heel and toes, but quickly went back to inspecting his shoe. Thankfully, though there was a charred spot where the laser had touched it, the laser didn't seem to have penetrated his boot. Link sighed, then slid his boot back on, tucking his leggings back into his shoes and tightening the buckle beneath the fabric.

'_You sure you don't want to dump the water out of the other one, too? I mean, not only is the water not good, but, eh, it'd kind of be weird to have one foot squishing water everywhere and have the other be halfway dry…' _

He halfheartedly nodded, yanking off the other shoe. More water dripped out, and Link fought the urge to use his boot as a fountain. Come to think of it, he was rather thirsty…

"Hey, do you know where some water that I can drink is? I dunno if that's saltwater or freshwater out there, but man, I don't think I've had any since yesterday…" he mumbled, trying to swallow and wet his dry throat.

'_Ah… Not sure. This is the Tower of the Gods, though—obviously they want to test your courage, not your ability to keep from eating or drinking for days on end.' _

Link groaned, pouting and crossing his arms as he sat against the wall. "This kinda stinks, doesn't it?"

'_What? Getting your boot charred, having almost no water, getting those blisters that I know for a fact you have, or not knowing what to do in this room?' _'Navi' asked, laughing lightly.

"You didn't have to make a list," the hero said, rolling his eyes. "But do you think it has anything to do with the shiny stuff over on that side? They kinda look like the things that I had to set statues on…"

A moment passed, and Link slammed a hand to his forehead. "How did I not see that earlier?"

'_You know, I was wondering when you would, too!' _his guide laughed, louder this time, and the hero sighed.

"You didn't want to tell me, so you just waited for me to get my foot almost burned off?" he asked, tugging his other boot on and buckling the strap.

'_To your credit, I didn't see them until you were already back over in the safe zone. But since you obviously can't take a joke...' _'Navi' said, laughing again, _'The circle is moving clockwise, so run around it in the other direction and it probably won't even notice you.' _

Somehow, it worked. And though Link had acquired more burns in the space of five minutes than he'd gotten for the first half of Dragon Roost Cavern, he was more than happy to just continue forward.

…

The Hero of Winds didn't know why there was a giant statue glowing blue, and he certainly didn't know why there was a stone in front of it, obviously written in Old Hylian, instructing him to do something.

'…_Place of truth,' _'Navi' finished, and Link snapped out of his thoughts, looking sheepish.

"What was that? I… eh, didn't catch the whole thing," the hero said smiling sheepishly.

'_You weren't listening, were you?' _his guide asked, sighing, and Link just looked to the ground. _'Ah, well. Basically, the stone's telling you to call over the statue so that you can guide it to its 'place of truth', which I'd assume to be out of this room and into the one you just came out of.' _

"Oh…" the hero nodded, blinking, then looking towards the statue again. "Ah, how am I supposed to call it over?"

'_The stone said something about 'Pressing R', but I think it got dusty right there or something. Must be a typo. I guess you just need to wave it over…?' _

Link looked for a very long minute at the statue, then sighed. "Eh, Mr. Statue?" he asked timidly, holding a hand up and giving a little wave. "C-Could you come with me, please…?"

Surprisingly, its perch lowered and the statue hopped forward, nearly trampling the hero. Link, startled, leapt back and stared wide-eyed at it. It followed him, even as he ran back through the maze.

'Navi' sighed, _'Not so fast, kid. The statue just follows the direction you're going. It can't follow you if you're about to lead it off of a cliff.' _

"R-Right," the hero stuttered, giving an uneasy chuckle. "I was totally trying to lead it and just failing miserably…"

'_It scared you, didn't it?' _

Link was quiet a moment, indignantly crossing his arms. "Just for that, I'm going to carry it the whole way. There's no need for me to -you know… lead it…"

'_You just don't want it to step on you, is that it?' _'Navi' asked, amused.

"I don't know what you're talking about," the hero protested, grunting at the weight of the statue as he weaved his way through the maze. He made it through with surprisingly few hassles, but was undoubtedly grateful as he dropped the statue once he was outside the door and past the weird moving platform thing.

He wouldn't admit it, but he really, really didn't like that platform.

Still, once he was back to the big, circular room that the statue belonged to, it hopped up a new perch and rose to the center of the room, then went still.

A sudden light blinded the hero, and he drew an arm up to shield his eyes. When the light died down, though, a stone tablet was in its place.

'_Huh. Looks like it's directions for a new song on your Wind Waker!' _the hero's guide cheered, and Link made his way to the top of the staircase. He followed the leads with the bone-white baton, and quickly found something enveloping him.

"_**Left… Still… Right… Still…"**_ a voice was suddenly saying, as if it was trying to burn the words into his mind. The hero let out a gasp and felt his hands moving unconsciously to the rhythm. _**"You have learned the Command Melody," **_the voice said in a dangerously monotone voice.

'_Ah… what was that?' _'Navi' suddenly asked, and Link snapped out of his mini-trance.

"I… don't really know…" the hero said, hesitating. "That was weird. I mean, something similar happened with the Wind Melody, but… not this strong."

'_Must be because it's the Tower of the Gods, then,' _his guide said, and Link nodded uneasily. _'Either way, that door's flashing. I'm guessing another statue's waiting, am I right?' _

…

On his adventure, the Hero of Winds had done a lot of weird things. He'd been rocketed into not one -but _two_ towers, thrown in the air by flowers, been half-eaten by flowers with teeth, used a grappling hook on a dragon's tail to pull the roof of a cavern onto a giant fire-monster, been drugged, met a fairy, roomed with Pirates for a night, slept in the Hero of Time's old hut, listened to fluent Old Hylian, stayed up for almost three days in a row at Dragon Roost Cavern—fighting the whole time- but nonetheless, and most notably, gotten a disembodied voice for a guide.

Not one of those, however, could've prepared him for what he was doing.

He'd used the Command Melody on the stone statue, fully expecting an ability to speak with it or something, so that he could guide it that way. But no—it could never be that simple, could it?

Instead, Farore and her (evidently demented) sisters had apparently thought it was a good idea to make him switch consciousness with a statue. And boy, was it strange. One minute he was standing on a weight-sensitive rainbow pad, side-by-side with the statue and waving around the Wind Waker, and the next he was standing beside himself, watching as he waved his hands around.

'…_Link?' _his guide suddenly asked, obviously just as baffled as he was. _'…Which one is you? I mean, obviously the you that's controlling the Wind Waker has your body… but…' _

Unfortunately, the hero couldn't respond, seeing as he was a statue and had only the ability to hop. And even that he wasn't particularly good at, seeing as he was used to balancing with his arms. So, not wanting to mull over the fact that he literally _couldn't_ talk, he hopped onto the rainbow bridge that had appeared across the way. Once he was on the other side, he panicked a moment, not knowing how to change back, but with conscious effort, his body stop waving his hands around for a split second, and then he was staring at the statue.

Link was silent a moment, half-struck dumb with shock, and appeared rather confused. "…What _was_ that?"

'…_I have absolutely no clue. That's… that's actually kind of creepy.' _

"Kind of?" the hero asked, incredulous. He stared up at the sky, his hands coiling into fists at his sides. "That was completely terrifying!"

'_Hmm… Maybe you should calm down. You seem absolutely beside yourself.' _'Navi' immediately burst into a fit of giggles, and the Hero of Winds sighed theatrically, rolling his eyes as he used his grappling hook to get back to the other side.

"You're horrible, y'know that?" Link asked, his rhetoric largely unconvincing as he was trying to fight back a laugh.

'_Hey, you should check out what's in the room over there… I dunno, but I think there's something you need on the inside.' _

The hero frowned a little, then checked his map—not easy to do while still trying to hold onto the rope with one hand. Sure enough, there was a treasure-chest in there, and it looked a little different. Mind made up, he started to swing the rope in the direction of the room.

'_And don't worry, the statue will still be waiting when you get back.' _

"Right, because I'd totally be worried...," he paused, landing hard on the ground, "…about that."

When he opened the door and walked through, he was met with a big surprise. Huge, in fact—almost four times his height, and at least three times his width. It was obviously a knight, though it had an aura that reeked of evil tampering. Shaking, Link pulled his sword out.

'_Ah, man! I hate these things!' _'Navi' suddenly muttered, evidently disconcerted. _'Alright, kid, um… I don't quite know how to explain this, but I'll tell you when to strike it. And when I tell you to strike it, hit it on its back with a vertical slice, okay?' _

The hero seemed to understand and nodded, walking slowly towards his foe, who spotted him once he was within a five-foot radius. The dark knight charged, drawing its sword.

Link instinctively took a step back, but that step turned into him being pinned against the wall by a very ticked off knight, and the hero kicked as hard as he could, managing to nail the knight square in the jaw. Its helmet fell off, clattering to the floor where it exploded into purple dust.

'_Quick! While he's confused, jump up and get out of there!' _

The hero complied, more ready than he thought he should've been, and broke his descent with a somersault. The knight was quick to follow him, though, and charged him once again with his sword. They circled eachother, and the dark knight seemed to hold him in some kind of respect. At the very least, the hero was now considered a worthy adversary. Link, meanwhile, was simply determined not to wet himself.

'_Relax, kid. You're doing fine. Now, remember what I taught you—when he charges at you a certain way, and you'll know it when you see it—NOW!' _'Navi' said suddenly, interjecting the last bit as they each saw the opening. Link charged, finally on the offensive, and rolled around the knight. With a single, harsh slice, he cut off the armor from behind, where it was flimsily tied with red cords. The armor exploded into more of the purple smoke.

It seemed that the dark knight was rather angry now, meanwhile hero was still trying to recover from rolling. He wasn't used to it, after all, because even though rolling felt natural, he'd only practiced on the ground, not on solid stone, and certainly not with his sword out. The knight charged, taking advantage of Link's dizziness, and the Hero of Winds quickly found that his arm was bleeding. Before the pain could really register, though, he'd delivered a quick attack to the knight's own arm. He knocked the sword from its hand.

'_Back against the wall, just for a minute,' _his guide ordered, and Link nodded, retreating. He rested there for precious few seconds while the knight fumbled for his sword.

"Wait, Navi," the hero whispered. "Why didn't I just finish him off while he didn't have his sword?"

'_We'll discuss that later, kid,' _'Navi' said, his voice uncharacteristically stern. _'For now, though, just focus, okay?' _

At that moment, the knight had retrieved its weapon and was making its way back to the hero. Link gripped his own sword a little tighter, and they went back to circling eachother. The dark knight started to move towards him, and Link immediately rolled around it, once more striking it on its back. It let out a cry of pain, then vanished into the same purple smoke.

The hero almost immediately went down to the floor, relieved to be able to rest. Link glanced at his arm—thankfully not his sword-arm—and frowned when he saw the blood, which was now starting to stain his tunic. With a sigh, he gripped it tightly, trying hard to stop the bleeding.

"So… what were you going to," the hero momentarily stopped talking and hissed as his arm sent out a short burst of pain. "What were you going to tell me? About, you know, attacking him when he didn't have a sword?"

'Navi' was quiet for a moment. _'You're a swordsman now. How would you feel if a fellow knight—regardless of what side he or she or it was on—decided to attack you while you didn't have your sword?' _

"…I guess I'd be a little angry, but I don't really…" Link trailed off, frowning. "How is the knight different from all of the monsters I've faced? Most of those didn't have weapons, aside from their own bodies or the occasional stick or axe…"

'_They didn't have free will and were trying to stop you by any means possible. You've seen their sneak-attacks,' _his guide said sternly. _'Surely you remember when you were in the Forsaken Fortress without your sword and they tried to burn you, even though you were defenseless.' _

"Well, yeah, but every monster I've come in contact with wanted to hurt me. That knight actually succeeded." Link took his hand away from his arm for just a second, and it started to bleed again. He cursed under his breath and bit his lip to keep from crying out.

'_But this one had free will. Not fully,' _'Navi' said quickly, as if afraid of being interrupted, _'But enough to have some sort of code of honor, however distorted by Ganon's magic it was.' _

"He pinned me to a wall with his sword and cut my arm. I don't know what you're trying to get at," the hero said, obviously nonplussed.

'_Next time you run into one of these and drop your sword, I guarantee you that it won't charge you until you pick it up again. It maybe a corrupted knight, but it's still a knight. It won't attack anyone who is unarmed. If you hadn't drawn your sword, I doubt it would've come after you at all, though I'm sure it would've thrown you back out the door,'_ his guide said with a sigh, and Link drew himself up to a sitting position.

"…I still don't quite understand what you're saying…" the hero said slowly, fighting a yawn. "...but I guess I kind of get it. Don't attack unarmed things, code of honor… yada yada yada?"

'Navi' just sighed again. _'…There's a lot more to it than that, but for now… I guess you should just get the orb he left behind, then open that treasure chest.' _

000

The Hero of Time let out a sigh, leaning against the wall. Truth be told, he was ready for some sleep, or at least something to eat, but he could bear it for now. Besides, Zelda did reserve the right to have some time to herself, though he had no idea what she was up to.

With a sigh, he glanced back to the screen. The boy had slashed open the glowing orb and taken the items on the inside, restocking his life energy on the magical 'hearts' that spilled out of it and curiously examined his arm, which healed almost instantly. The Hero of Time grinned—he'd always had that reaction, himself. There was just something about those magical hearts.

With wide eyes, the young hero picked up a Knight's Crest and eagerly stashed it inside his spoils bag. Link tried not to think about what that symbolized. One could only obtain a crest from a dead knight, after all, and in all honesty… he was little more than a dead knight, just with higher rank.

He briefly wondered if anyone had collected _his_ crest.

But he knew that bitterness and self-pity wouldn't be helping him any, and he ordered himself to focus. And really, if he, the hero with experience, couldn't keep his head in the game, then how was he supposed to mentor a kid that was years—centuries—younger than himself?

He'd teach the kid about Honor later. The younger of the two seemed to have a decent grasp on most other things that came with nobility, but there were definitely some things he needed to know.

And then he saw the boy pulling out the Hero's Bow, pointing it in the exact wrong direction—_how did a person even think to hold it pointing towards themself_—and all seriousness was forced away. How could anyone keep a straight face while watching the kid, anyways?

000

'_You'll get a lot further on your quest if you, um, hold it the right way,' _his guide suddenly said, and Link was immeadiatly aware of the forced-back laughter.

"What? I thought this was the right way…" He glanced uneasily down to the bow and arrow. "Do I hold it with the string facing up?"

'_Ah… You might want to grip the part that's intended to be gripped with your right hand. Your dominant one—left, in this case—should be handling the arrow.' _

Link made an 'Ohhh…' face, moving his hands until they seemed to match the description. "Like this?"

'_We'll work on form later…' _his guide said, chuckling. _'For now… just aim at the target over the door, got it?' _

Nearly an hour had passed before a very tired, very cross Link actually hit the target, exhaustedly making his way back to the room where the second statue still awaited.

He was ready for a break, but in all honesty, he just wanted this to be over.

…

"…This place is confusing," the Hero of Winds whined, slumping his shoulders. And he was decidedly right—moving platforms were everywhere, and he hadn't the slightest idea where to go first. The endless space beneath the platforms didn't help, either, and the flaming skulls hovering over the area weren't exactly friendly.

'_Ah, you'll be fine,' _'Navi' said optimistically, and Link just looked incredulous. _'Get out your Deku Leaf and you'll probably have this beat in two seconds, flat!'_

"Easy for you to say," the hero muttered, crossing his arms uneasily. He bit his lip for a moment, his fear of heights creeping up for a moment, before he took a deep breath and dug out the leaf. Link took a shaky step forward, closing his eyes and was just about to jump, when—

'_Nononononono!' _'Navi' said, and Link almost plummeted off the side of the cliff from the sudden-ness. Thankfully, he managed to latch onto the edge, though his cry of surprise automatically caused the fire-skulls to start in his direction. _'I meant for you to get out your Deku-Leaf and get rid of the fire from the skulls, first!' _

"…Oh…" the hero said laughing nervously. Surprisingly, things worked out perfectly fine because of that. The skulls drew near enough for him to easily fan them down, and soon there wasn't an enemy in sight.

…That didn't keep the moving platforms from being any less terrifying, though.

'_Don't tell me you're still scared!' _'Navi' exclaimed, obviously exasperated, and Link gave a nervous chuckle, fumbling with his Deku Leaf.

"Sh-Shut up! I'm not scared!" he said. Though from the way his hands were trembling, it was rather obvious that his statement was pretty far from the truth.

'_Well I'm convinced…' _his guide said, laughing. _'But seriously, kid. It's not that hard. You just gotta pull it out and jump! Just like all those other times!' _

"I've never tried to land on a moving thing before! Plus, I don't seem to recall endless drops anywhere else!" the hero shouted, eye twitching in annoyance.

'_Riiiiiight. So you didn't have to launch from flowers to higher flowers, or anything, huh?' _

"Those weren't moving."

'_Technically speaking, they rocketed you into the air, making you do about fifty different flips, and you had to blindly turn and figure out where to go from there.' _'Navi' did have a good point, but at the moment, Link was distracted by the endless black that lay just beyond the edge of the cliff.

"It wasn't blindly," the hero cut in. "You were telling me where to go, remember?"

'…_Hm. Would it make you feel better if you just closed your eyes and I showed you where to go?' _'Navi' asked, hesitant, and Link gave an uneasy smile.

"Ah… Sure? But even if I do get down there, how'll I get back up…?" he asked, looking around at the maze before him.

'_There are some platforms nearby, actually. See? One's about to come up, right now…' _

And though the hero was, at first, reassured by the platform steadily rising into view—close enough to step onto—the reassurance almost immediately fell through. He hadn't expected the platforms to be so small! Link was half-certain that if he even stepped onto it, it wouldn't be able to carry him…

'_Okay, kid. Just step off the ledge and onto the platform. Obviously you're too nervous to fly correctly, and I don't want you running out of magic right in the middle of nowhere. So you're going to try to just walk it at first, okay? And once you get over your… fear, or whatever you want to call it, you can try to fly for some of the more distant ones.' _

Link almost sighed in relief. "Thanks, Navi."

Unfortunately, by the time that his guide had given him the instructions, the platform had already gone down again. The hero peered over the edge nervously, suddenly scared that he'd lose balance and fall over, when it rose again. Shaking, Link stepped onto it, suppressing his panic as it carried him higher and higher… and then lower, to where he could better see the entire maze.

"Are you sure this is safe?" he asked, eyes wide. "Because I'm halfway certain that this is gonna end up with me falling forever through a bottomless pit!"

'Navi' seemed to be muttering several words in Old Hylian, and from the tone, Link guessed that they were adaptations of the words he so often heard Orca saying when the old man would slice himself on one of his spears.

'_Kid, they're moving platforms. Get over it.' _

The hero suddenly started to sniffle, and his voice was shaky when he finally spoke up again. "But… I hate heights…"

'Navi' was quiet for a moment, and though he was supposed to be a 'brave hero', Link more or less drew his knees to his chest in an effort to better stay on the platform.

'…_Sorry. I didn't really mean for it to come out like that. It's just… the longer that you stay here, the more you're gonna lose strength. Dungeons can be… disheartening, and this place is supposed to be testing your courage. I'm assuming that Farore, Din, and Nayru aren't intending to, you know… put you through all this, but it's part of their job. They just design the Tower—they don't know who they'll be having to put through it, alright?' _

Link stared up into the upper levels of the room, and was unsurprised to find that the upper part was as dark as the perceived bottomless pit. For all he knew, it was unending both ways. With a sigh, he leaned back, just a little—just enough to make him have a mini-panic attack because he was sure he was about to go over the ledge, when really, he had at least a foot left over—and relaxed his legs until they went over the side of the platform.

"I… Thanks, Navi," he said hesitantly, fiddling with his sleeves. "I think I'm ready now. So… where am I supposed to go from here?"

His guide seemed to smile, though, as always, it was hidden in the nothingness that his voice seemed to come from. _'Alrighty, then, kid. What you want to do jump from this platform to the one to your left, then go right, then to the one that goes up and down, jump off of that one when it's at its highest onto the nearest one, and then—" _

"Navi?" Link said suddenly, raising an eyebrow. "Could you slow it down a bit? Still trying not to jump off of the edge of the world, here."

'…_Right,' _'Navi' said, chuckling sheepishly. _'Heh. What I was saying was that, in just a few seconds, jump onto the nearest one…' _

"Okay," the hero nodded, suppressing a shriek as he left the relative safety of the up-and-down platform for a new, completely unexplored one.

There were worse things in life.

**XXX**

**Don't mind me. Just skipping around again. Geez… this dungeon probably took me, what, an hour? So these are mainly just the rooms that I wanted to write about or have significance. By the end of this chapter, he's already put back the third statue, even though I don't specifically write it out. Got it? Okay. Good. Now, let's please, please move on. Shall we? **

***locks up Link and Link from the disclaimers* **

**And a quick question, before I request (as always, at the very bottom) for you guys to Read and Review: **

**Who do you guys think is the most influential in this story? The one that you like to hear about the most? OoT Link or WW Link? Guide or Guided? Or is it a totally random person, like the weirdo control-freak king or Zelda? Eh? Eh? Tell me in the Review section. **

**Now, all together, people—like always…**

**Read and Review!**


	16. Victory

**Thank you guys, as always, for the reviews. And since you guys pretty much all answered, "OoT Link"… well, I'll add more parts with him. Juuuust for you guys. **

**Disclaimer: SamuraiSal1 in no way, shape, or form owns Legend of Zelda. If she did… well, she'd be a lot richer, that's for sure. **

**XXX**

"This is the last room to explore. It's gotta have the treasure chest with the boss key, right?" the Hero of Winds asked, panting as he ran. A flaming skull came out of nowhere, and a Wizzrobe jumped out from seemingly nowhere.

Link sighed, getting out his bow-and-arrow. It took quite a few tries, and the Wizzrobe managed to scorch him twice, but he finally shot it out of the sky. It vanished into a puff of smoke, and the hero turned his attention to the fire-skull. Thankfully, Link was out of its range of vision, so he managed to fan out its fire. It fell to the floor, and the hero silently thanked whatever goddesses were listening that it shattered upon impact.

The treasure chest suddenly appeared, and Link leaned against the wall. His head was pounding, his stomach seemed angry at him for not eating anything for Farore knew how long, and his skin was dry from the lack of water. His feet both felt like giant blisters, and to top it off, he didn't even know what time of day it was. That wasn't even to mention the various places he was bleeding from or burned. In essence, he felt like a pile of hurt that hadn't gotten enough sleep.

"Ugh." And that one syllable just about summed up his feelings on the matter.

Still, Link was learning to press on, and so he pulled himself back up and dragged himself to the center of the room, where the treasure chest was waiting.

He nearly cried tears of joy upon realizing that it did, in fact, hold the boss key, and that he was all set to fight the big, bad, monster that was waiting for him. He could go home after that.

"Hey, Navi?" Link asked, still trying to catch his breath. "Where's the Bad Guy hiding?"

It was silent a moment, and the hero waited patiently for an answer. None came for several minutes. So, he just sighed and took it as a small blessing. Leaning against the wall, he closed his eyes and it didn't take more than a few seconds for his breathing to even out.

000

"The Sage of Spirit and I have been talking," the Princess of Hyrule said slowly, making sure that her hero was listening. "And… we've discovered that you are necessary to complete a role dictated in an ancient text." She was silent a moment, keeping hold of his hand and trying to gage his reaction.

"Wait, wait, wait. Let me get this straight," the Hero of Time interjected, staring intently at Zelda. "You're telling me that I have to…?"

"Fufill a prophecy," she was quick to add, and Link just threw his hands in the air.

"Oh, yeah, it's just doing whatever an ancient scroll tells me to do. Totally not a big deal, right?" the hero said, sarcastic as ever, and snorted in frustration. "You do get that I suddenly have to just jump right in there and go back to hero business and just go trying to be 'that guy depicted in the stain glass windows' again?"

Zelda sighed, still keeping hold of his hand. She knew very well that she just needed to let him get all of his frustration out before she broke the news to him, fully. Besides, she thought privately, it was always fun to see him get flustered when he realized he was wrong.

"And… and you do realize that last time I was 'trying to fufill a prophecy,' I ended up 'royally' screwing the kingdom up, right? Right?" Link looked back at her, only to notice her rolling his eyes. He captured her chin in his fingers and she glanced to his face. "Right?"

To his surprise, the princess just laughed. "Honestly, Link, you really need to lighten up. You don't even know what this is for. It might just surprise you." Before he could interject, she put a finger to his lips to quiet him. "And you didn't screw up the kingdom. You made a decent King."

"Yeah, I was the guy that plummeted the economy."

Zelda scoffed, looking away from him. "One, you were the only one that the people would've accepted. Two, I loved you—_love_ you—and I married you for that more than anything else. And three…" she trailed off a moment, smiling widely. "Three, the only reason that we nearly went bankrupt is because you were using the money for its intended purpose. Its people! Need I remind you how often you went into the many villages and distributed food for those who needed it?"

The hero just slumped against the wall. "I could've been smarter about it, though…"

"By doing what?" she asked, laughing. "Doing odd jobs? Oh, yes, I'm sure that the people would've loved seeing their King—"

"It doesn't matter what the people would've loved to see me do or not do! I could've done something!" The hero abruptly let go of her hand, crossing his arms sullenly. Link briefly looked back towards the screen. "Great… I think the kid's asleep."

The princess smirked and reclaimed one of his hands. "The prophecy involves him."

The Hero of Time's eyes widened, and he whipped his head back around to Zelda. "…What?"

"You heard me. The prophecy involves him. I'll tell you more after he defeats Gohdan." With that, she stood up, winking mischievously before vanishing through the wall.

Link was quiet a moment, cursing his own immaturity. Of course he had to say something stupid!

But then he glanced back to the screen, where the boy had been sitting for several minutes, his eyes closed and his breathing surprisingly even.

The Hero of Time took the chance to look him over. He found the boy's condition as less than satisfactory, and decided not to wake him up yet. The kid looked like he needed it.

000

Not nearly long enough time had passed from when the Hero of Winds had fallen asleep, to when he woke up. But even though he knew that very well—his headache, and the fact that his muscles felt like jelly from overuse—he was still a little irritated that he'd fallen asleep at all.

"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" Link asked, putting his hands on his hips and looking up towards the ceiling. To his relief, 'Navi' seemed to have come back.

'_I'm not sure if you've looked in a mirror lately, but you could really use some rest and some of that soup before the battle, kid.' _

The hero was nonplussed. Still, he was absolutely starving and pulled out some of his grandma's soup and chugged the remainder of the bottle. It went to work immediately, curing not only his hunger, but also most of the cuts and bruises he'd acquired. It didn't make him feel less tired, but it at least took the edge off of his exhaustion.

"…I just want to get out of this place, okay?" he said, looking to the ground. After a moment, he wiped the ring of gold away off of his upper lip and re-clipped the bottle to his belt.

'_Can't blame you for that… but I managed to, eh, figure out who you'll be fighting, if that makes you feel any better,' _'Navi' said, and Link heard the smile in his voice.

"Yeah?" the hero asked, pulling himself to an upright position. "Is it… you know, super hard?"

'_He,' _his guide corrected gently. _'And… ah, just remember that this is to test your courage, not hurt you. Granted, it can hurt you, but…'_

Link rolled his eyes. "Just tell me what I'm up against, please? I don't want to, you know, get spooked before I even have to fight him."

'…_Right. It's a giant, floating head that controls giant, floating hands. It's a literal part of this tower, and his name is Gohdan. He's actually a pretty decent guy… But he's… pretty-much-kind-of-a-demi-god?' _'Navi' said the last part hastily, and the hero had to wait a moment to even process what his guide had said.

"…A what now? A demi-god?" Link confusedly looked upwards, obviously baffled. "So I'm fighting something that's, like, super-powerful, right?"

'…_In essence, yes. But don't worry!' _the pseudo-fairy was quick to add. _'He doesn't want to hurt your or… you know, anything worse.'_ Silently, Link thanked him for not using the 'k' word. _ 'He actually wants you to win and will probably tell you the basics… if not, I will. I… er, kind of already know what to do.' _

"Is there a reason for you being so cryptic?" the hero asked, genuinely curious. "Seriously, I wish you would, you know…"

'_Would what?'_

Link shrugged. "Forget it. You'll be honest with me when you're ready, right?"

It was quiet on the 'other end of the line' (so to speak) and the hero just looked to the ground a moment before digging out the dungeon map and searching for the area that he knew held the monster, or 'Gohdan' as 'Navi' called him. Truth be told, Link really just wanted to call a time-out and find somewhere where he could just sleep for a week. But there was another part that was infinitely stronger, and it forced him to press on. It seemed to like to call itself 'courage'.

'_Well, if you want to keep going, you should really stretch. When you finally do finish up with this dungeon, you'll be seriously sore. Stretching would take the edge off.' _

Silently, the hero nodded, trying to mimic what Orca did every evening. He was sloppy at best, but even though it burned quite a bit, Link was determined to push through.

'…_Don't go that far with it. It's not supposed to hurt, just be a little uncomfortable.' _

"Oh," was all the hero said. He shrugged a moment, then continued, less extreme. It felt surprisingly good, and when he was done, Link had to suppress a sigh of relief. "That feels better, thanks."

A few moments of silence passed before the hero just shrugged and opened his map. "…So, where's the big, bad boss of this place?"

'_It's past that really long corridor, remember? Should just be through a couple of these doors…' _

…

After getting lost about five different times, the Hero of Winds was unsurprisingly frustrated. "I thought you said that it was just past a couple of these doors!"

'_Well, excuse me if the map is smudged and I haven't been here in forever!' _'Navi' was quick to say, and Link just grumbled something under his breath before heading through yet another door. Surprisingly, when it opened, it opened to fresh air.

The hero blinked at the bright, afternoon sunlight. He hadn't seen the sky in at least a day… and hadn't it been early morning when he got there? He'd certainly been there for more than a few hours, at any rate.

'_Oh, hey, we found it!' _his guide said, suddenly cheery. _'Geez, I didn't know that you'd been in there for that long!' _

Link nodded sleepily, still waking up from his brief nap, and the warmth of the sun sure wasn't helping. But he knew that he could sleep after he battled the 'boss' of the dungeon, so he started up the staircase…

Only to have a laser shot at him the moment he stepped onto the stairs. It immediately shocked him awake—in more ways than one—and he tripped over his own two feet in an effort to get out of range from the statue.

"…Well, I wasn't expecting that," he said cautiously, examining his boot that, as always, had managed to get singed. "Farore!" he swore, noting that this time, it'd actually burned through the leather and now his sock was exposed.

The moment the word left his mouth, the laser fired at him, hitting him on his foot again, burning through the sock and blistering his foot further. Link hopped up and down for a moment, trying to grab a hold of his burned foot, and finally fell backwards onto the ground.

'_What'd I tell you about using Farore as a cuss word?' _'Navi' chided, though it was easy to tell that the pseudo-fairy thought the whole thing rather funny.

The hero was quiet a moment, pouting as he waited for his foot to feel decent enough to walk on. "Yeah, yeah… I just didn't think that they had that a sense of humor that twisted."

'_Someone wise once told me that they appreciate irony.' _

"How's that ironic?" he snorted, rolling his eyes. He leaned against the wall a moment, then tested his foot. When it touched the ground, Link couldn't help but hiss in pain.

'_You should apologize to Her,' _'Navi' suggested. _'She usually appreciates it.' _

The hero sighed loudly, then looked to the sky and put on his cutest face. "I'm sorry, Farore. I won't do it again…"

His foot immediately went back to normal, and his boot suddenly stretched then reconnected to itself. Link's eyes widened for a minute before he looked to the sky. He stared up at it for a while, watching the clouds move, then whispered a quiet, 'Thank you'.

'_Told you so.' _

The hero almost immediately snapped out of it and rolled his eyes. Without a word, he started up the staircase again. The statues with the laser-orbs rotated for a bit, and Link gulped down his fear. He ran as fast as he could past the first statue, and thankfully it didn't catch him, though the singed spot right behind him was a little unnerving.

There was a brief landing, and he caught his breath a moment before continuing forward.

'…_You do realize that you can break those things with a bomb, right?' _

Link looked around for a minute, blinking slowly. His silence quickly passed, though, and he glared at the sky, his eye twitching in annoyance. "Why didn't you tell me that before?"

'_I thought you wanted to be stealthy or something.' _

It was quiet for another minute before Link just grumbled something under his breath and dug out his bombs. He quickly threw it to the ones before him, and they exploded. He walked triumphantly past them. "You know, I really wonder how I can carry so many bombs…"

'_Ah… I wouldn't say that, if I were you. Usually, when you point out faults in logic, some higher deity decides to do something about it.' _

The hero gulped. "Ah… right. You know, I really wonder why I can't hold more bombs!"

'_That's more like it,' _'Navi' said, laughing.

…

Link arrived at the door to the boss room a few minutes later. He let out a shaky breath before turning from it and focusing, instead, on the pots around it.

'_See if you can find a fairy; there's usually one waiting for you in these jars. You can stick it in your empty bottle and if you, ah, you know… fall in battle… it'll heal you and revive you.' _

The hero considered for a minute, then nodded. "I guess I figured you, you know, wouldn't appreciate it if I captured a fairy. You're posing as 'Navi', right?"

'_Huh. Well, there are a lot of different types of fairies. There are the Great Fairies, and normal fairies, and guardian fairies, too. But just normal fairies are best at healing wounds, and they actually appreciate being able to lend a hand to heroes,' _'Navi' explained, though for reasons unknown, sounded sad.

"…What, exactly, were guardian fairies used for, though?" Link asked, genuinely curious.

'_Eh, pretty much what I'm doing right now. But they talk a lot more and they pull on your hair and/or tug on your ears to wake you up if there's something trying to destroy you in your sleep. They also provide light when you're in a dark dungeon,'_ 'Navi' said, considering something. _'Come to think of it, they also talk to strangers for you.' _

"Huh," was all the hero said in reply, obviously lost in thought. After a moment, he got out his bottle and slashed open a few jars. Most had a few rupees or some of those mysterious heart containers, but lo and behold, one held a fairy. Surprisingly, it flew into the empty bottle. Link put a cap on it and re-clipped it to his belt.

The hero picked up some of the strange hearts. And, like always, the moment he touched them, they seemed to flow into his veins. He felt suddenly prepared to fight, and so he did.

Link walked through the door with a grim determination secondary only to his elation to finally be done with the Tower of the Gods.

The door closed behind him with a slam, and the hero glanced behind him for a split second before diverting his attention to the task at hand. The room seemed to be empty at first glance, but when Link looked a little closer, there were some awful big carvings next to eachother on the wall…

He walked a little further into the room, stopping in front of a gold plate when the walls started to glow. Random carvings gave off a bright blue glow, and a voice came from seemingly nowhere.

"You have done well to find your way to this place," it said, and Link looked around for the source of the words. "Oh, Chosen One… Accept this final challenge…"

And suddenly, the bright blue glow from the small indentations spread, and even brighter shades gave light to the gigantic 'carvings' on the wall. Out of the 'carvings' came a giant hand with an eye in its palm, followed the same hand on the opposite wall. But from the space in-between the hands came something at least twice their size—a giant statue of a head.

Now, Link had been rather calm about hearing the voice and seeing the walls glow, but when he saw the hands and head floating, he was more than a little nervous.

'Navi' seemed to pick up on this.

'_Don't worry, kid,' _his guide said, trying to be reassuring. _'Just remember what you've learned in this dungeon.' _

"That would be…?" the hero asked, starting to run around the room in an effort to stay away from the strange, floating objects.

'_All right, think of it this way. Have you gotten anything in this dungeon?' _

"The bow and arrow… why?" Link asked, confused for a moment. One of the hands suddenly came flying towards him, and the hero rolled out of the way a split second before impact.

'_You got the bow and arrow here for a reason. Get it out.' _

Link wondered at it for a moment, digging around in his seemingly endless inventory. "So you're telling me that I'll always be lucky enough to get the items I need a few hours before I'll need them?"

'Navi' was quiet a moment. _'…It would seem so.' _

The hero huffed a moment, looking around for the perfect target. "Figures."

And with that out of his system, he found his target. Each of the hands had an eye on their palm, and if the legends had taught him anything, it was that the eyes are every monster's weak-point. So, that in mind, he immediately aimed for the eye on one of the hands. After several failed attempts, he hit it, and it closed, leaving the hand to drop down to the ground.

It was right about this time that the other hand snuck up behind him and smacked him to the other side of the room. Link hit the wall with a crash, then slid to the ground. The room seemed to spin for a minute before he got his bearings, but then he got up and, using the wall for some support, aimed for the other hand. He managed to hit it on his first try, and that left just the giant head.

The statue's head moved towards him, and the hero squinted at it for a moment before aiming and firing at each of its eyes. Each eye took several shots, but it finally seemed to de-power. It dropped from the air and landed with a loud thud.

'_Throw a bomb in its mouth, just like those annoying spinny-things.' _

Link nodded, thankful that he still had his bombs out from the laser-statues. He chucked on into the head and when it detonated, steam poured from its ears.

Instantly, both hands and the head seemed to be restored. The hero sighed, but picked his bow up again, anyways. It was then that he noticed he was out of arrows.

"I'm out! What do I do now?" he asked, obviously unnerved. Both hands and the head stilled at that moment, and the head did something strange—it blew a thick stack of arrows from its nose. Link stared at the sight for a moment, confused, but then remembered that Gohdan didn't really want to hurt him.

So, as quickly as he could, he ran through and collected the stack. Surprisingly, the arrows were in better condition than normal. Link smiled, then stashed the way in his inventory. Once he was finished, though, the statue whirred back to life, and the process started all over again.

Link fired as quick as he could to the first hand and was unable to stop the smile that came over him when he hit it the first time he tried. Unfortunately, that bit of good luck didn't stay, and he had to reload at least three or four times in order to get the second hand. In the end, he was too slow, and the second hand, once again, knocked him into a wall. Thankfully, this time it was over a shorter distance, and even though he hit the wall a little harder, he was still okay to keep going.

'_You okay?' _'Navi' asked, and Link shrugged off his guide's concern, instead trying to keep focus.

But even so, Gohdan seemed concerned and stopped moving around for long enough for Link to brush himself off and gather up the items that had been knocked from his grasp upon impact. When he picked everything back up, though, the head and still-working hand came back to life, and the game was on once more. Link fired, and this time he didn't miss.

Gohdan's second hand dropped from the sky, and the hero changed his target to the eyes on the head. He fired several times before he hit it enough for the head to drop from the sky.

Panting, he threw the bomb into the statue's mouth.

Link used the time the bomb took to explode to catch his breath. He was breathing rather hard from trying to run around and fire, and not sleeping for more than an hour in the last twenty-four hadn't helped him recover from being insanely tired. Still, it was enough, and he was almost done with the battle, anyways. …Or so he was hoping.

The three pieces of the boss came back to life, and the hero grudgingly reloaded his bow and arrow. He still had about ten arrows left, but he felt half-inclined to waste them simply for a chance to catch his breath. But Link knew that he was in the Tower of the Gods, and this was testing his courage. He couldn't just be lazy; he had to fight.

'_Kid, you sure you don't want to, you know, take a breather for a minute?' _'Navi' asked, and Link snapped out of his in-battle-trance.

"Huh? Oh, no," he only half-lied. "I'm fine. I can finish this up. I just want to be done, you know?"

'Navi' seemed concerned. _'…If you're sure. I don't think you'll have to fire at it too many more times. You're almost done, kid. Just try not to let it hit you again, all right?' _

Link nodded. It was then that both hands started towards him, and he was flattened between them. When the hands next came apart, the hero dropped from the sky, and landed hard on the ground.

He let out a weak groan and pulled himself into a standing position. Thankfully, the hands and head seemed to agree that he deserved a momentary break. Even though he wasn't fully out of arrows, the head dropped some more to the ground, and Link ran to get them.

'_Easy, kid. You don't have to run,' _'Navi' said as the hero weaved dangerously back and forth, trying to keep on his feet. _'Gohdan will wait for you to pick them up before he goes after you again.' _

The hero bent over uncertainly and picked up the arrows as quick as he could. "I gotta do this quick. It's supposed to test me…" He shook his head briefly, then got back into the best standing position he could manage.

'_Yeah. Test you, not kill you!' _'Navi' shouted, for once not substituting 'kill' with 'destroy' or 'end'.

Link glared up at the sky, obviously annoyed. "I'm trying out that whole 'nobility' thing. I thought you were a stickler for the rules."

'_Oh, I'm sorry—since when did I tell you to purposely get hurt?' _

The hero frowned. "Trust me, it's not on purpose." With that, he placed the arrows in his quiver, and Gohdan came back to life.

Link immediately fired at the eyes in the palms, and surprisingly, he managed to hit both faster than before. They came to a halt, and the hero directed his attention to Gohdan's head. He fired at the eyes, and almost instantly, the head stopped and opened its mouth. The hero threw in a single bomb, and when it detonated, the statue started to shake.

When it stopped shaking, a light came from it and it spoke again.

"The path can now be opened." Gohdan was silent for a moment, seeming to consider something. "Oh, Chosen Ones… What will now come to pass is tied to your fate—to the path that you have both chosen."

"'Chosen Ones'…? 'Both chosen?" Link asked, obviously confused. "What do you…?"

But the statue did not answer his question. Instead, it simply said, "Go forward with caution."

With that, the statue slowly slid backwards, going towards its niche, and a laser shot from the ceiling. Instinctively, the hero jumped back, but thankfully, the laser turned out to be of a good variety. It spread out to where it seemed to be more of a translucent, pink curtain that shimmered from unnatural light, and Link felt himself relax.

'_Good job, kid,' _'Navi' said, and Link just stood there awkwardly for a moment, unsure what to say to his guide. Hadn't they just been arguing?

There was a sudden vibration around the room, and the hero looked up just in time to see Gohdan slide into place. Before it went back to 'sleep', however, it tossed out a large 'heart' container that was surrounded by translucent film.

Link let out a sigh of relief as he touched the power-up and felt it wash over him. His bruises lessened, though they didn't entirely disappear, and the pain that came from pressing on for too long washed away, as well.

A moment passed, and Link walked into the veil of pink. Almost immediately, he rose to the surface. He floated for what felt like several minutes, but when he reached the top, he felt strangely disappointed. That, however, quickly went away when he climbed the ladder at the center of the room, and he saw the view from the very top of the Tower.

'…_Woah,' _'Navi' said, clearly as awestruck as the hero.

Link nodded. "It's incredible… I think I can see my island from here!"

And that was definitely saying a lot, seeing as he was far from home. After all, Outset was one of the southernmost islands in the Great Sea, and the tower was in-between each of the triangle-isles.

It was quiet for quite some time, and Link looked around. "Ah, not to say that this isn't absolutely amazing… but how do I get down from here?"

'_I don't know, kid,' _his guide admitted reluctantly. _'But… Oh!' _he suddenly interjected. _'Look! There's a bell above you. Maybe you're supposed to ring it!' _

The hero considered it for a minute. He looked at it closely, and, upon further inspection, decided that he could probably reach one of the dangling chords with his grappling hook. The minute he'd hooked on and started to swing, the bell rang, seeming to echo across the entirety of the Great Sea.

While swinging, Link was suddenly aware of a pathway—more like a slide—that was only visible from that high up. With a smirk, he let go of the bell-string and launched himself into the air.

Thankfully, he caught himself with his Deku Leaf before he hit the path. Link resisted the urge to yell in triumph as he slid down the long, very steep, slope towards the water.

It was then that he started to worry a little.

'_Don't worry, kid. You're not going super-fast, and your legs are below you. Just enjoy the ride and take a deep breath.' _

Link nodded, though it was easy to tell that he wasn't entirely okay with sliding with that much force into the water. Taking a deep breath, he prepared for the impact—

Which didn't come. Half a second before he would've splashed into the Great Sea, a wind slowed him and the bridge sloped until it was flat. At the edge of the bridge was his boat.

The Hero of Winds decided that he'd never been so happy to see the King of Red Lions in his life, and was asleep nearly the moment that he stepped foot inside.

The King of Red Lions was silent for a moment, craning his neck around to see the boy sleeping inside of him. He heard loud snores and let out a huff of frustration, but he figured that Link must've stayed up the entire time he'd been in the Tower.

The kid deserved a proper rest, though the King of Red Lions would've preferred it if he'd actually waited for him to explain that, by ringing the bell, he'd opened a portal to the Old Hyrulian Castle.

Until the child woke up, however, the boat was stuck rocking back and forth underneath the ancient columns of the Tower of the Gods.

**XXX**

**Could have been a better chapter, but… I'm just glad that I'm done with it. Author's block is a pain, and apparently it's not helped by sleep deprivation. Why can't I ever manage to sleep more than a couple hours a night…? **

**Ah, well. SamSal's gonna stop whining now. 'Till next time! **

**Read and Review!**


	17. Making Plans and Mysterious Meetings

**What? There wasn't a witty disclaimer in the last chapter? Say it ain't so! **

**Disclaimer: "Hey, look! Hey, hey, hey look! Hey, Internet people! Listen! Hey! You're not listening! Hey, look! Do you think we can break that rock? It looks awful breakable! Oh, hey! Look, listen! Hey! Look! Listen to me already! You should to go the castle to look for the Princess! Hey, hey, look! Look! Listen! You're still not listening to me! Look carefully at the A button to see whether or not you can move! Hey, look at me! Look at me and listen to the things I'm saying! Press forward on the yellow joy-stick to talk to me! Hey! Listen! I have needs too, you know! Look me in the eyes and listen already! Listen! LISTEN!" **

"…**?"**

"**Oh, what, you thought I had something important to say? Heh, no. I just wanted to say hi. Hi, Link!" **

"…**!" **

"**Don't get your panties in a bunch. Or… skirt and tights. Hm. Not really much of a difference if you think about it. Hey, Link! Look!" **

"…"

"**You're not listening to me! You never listen to me! Why did the Great Deku Tree ever make you my Kokiri in the first place!" **

"…"

"…**Oh, hey. Sorry you guys had to—OH LOOK!—read through all that. I was just trying to say—LISTEN!—that Legend of Zelda and all its affiliates don't belong to—OH HEY THERE!—SamuraiSal1." **

**(What have I done…?)**

**XXX**

The Hero of Time watched as the boy fell asleep, then tried to halt his laughter as the King of Red Lions sighed loudly and rocked back and forth, often glancing over to the portal that'd appeared at the bell's ringing.

…Come to think of it, that would be a fun explanation when the kid fell asleep, wouldn't it? 

Right. Link was sure it would. But at the moment, he was worrying—something he wasn't used to feeling—over Zelda's last words to him before she disappeared.

"_You heard me. The prophecy involves him. I'll tell you more after he defeats Gohdan." _

The hero cursed under his breath, then took off his ever-present hat and further messed up his hair. It just wasn't fair to be stuck in a room with nothing to do but to watch over a kid that had little more than a fragile sword and a hero complex. Not that he was complaining, though—it was mainly the lack of food or sleep that was making him a little irritated.

…Okay, maybe a little more than a little irritated. But what would you expect when you wanted to yell at someone and you couldn't because you'd be afraid of waking someone that had just gone toe-to-toe with a giant, ancient, floating statue, and bounced back every time he got thrown into a wall.

What felt like hours passed, and eventually, Link decided that the kid wasn't in any danger from attacks, and simply decided to go to sleep, too.

His eyes, however, had scarcely closed before an all-too-familiar princess finally showed up. She walked as quiet as she could over to the hero and nudged him awake.

"HYAH!" he yelled, obviously startled. Link hadn't exactly expected her to visit any time soon, and was nonplussed at her late arrival.

"Not so loud," Zelda hissed, putting her hand over his mouth. The hero, however, simply stared dully at her, waiting for some kind of explanation. "I can only keep so much noise from getting onto the other side of the screen."

Link was quiet a minute, taking the opportunity to yawn and stretch out. "All right, all right. Now, you said that the, eh, prophecy-thing was about him, too?" he prompted, as usual, getting right to the point.

"…Yes." The princess frowned a moment, biting her lip at the boy who was so peacefully sleeping on his boat. The young hero and future-Triforce-bearer looked absolutely exhausted.

"By all means, continue," Link said with a sigh, rolling his eyes at her hesitation. "It's not like we could possibly have a time limit or anything. We're immortal. Oh, wait…"

"You're mad at me," Zelda said, half-glaring at him.

"You think?" the hero asked, honestly surprised that she had to ask. "You come in the room and tell me that I'm going to be part of _another_ prophecy, then say that the kid I'm guiding will be a part of it this time—no pressure there, right?—and leave before you even explain yourself." He crossed his arms, leaning harder against the wall. "So, yes. I'm mad at you."

To his surprise, Zelda started to laugh. Link stared. "What's so funny?"

"You!" she grinned, hugging him as hard as she could. The hero's eyes widened a moment before he awkwardly turned his head away and tried to keep on crossing his arms and retaining his pout. It didn't work for long, though, as Zelda forced her arms between his. "You get so worked up over everything! And here I was going to tell you some great news, too…"

"Just get to the point," Link said, unusually cross.

The princess laughed for a few seconds more, then brought herself away from him until she was just far enough to look in his eyes while she talked. "Naroou and I have been talking—that's the Sage of Spirit, in case you've forgotten—and researching some of the ancient texts. I remembered reading something about a hero from the past meeting up with a hero of the present, and something clicked."

"Point?" the hero reminded her.

"…Right. So, as we were researching, we found quite a few different manuscripts. Most were poems, but we finally found exactly what we were looking for." Zelda breathed a sigh and grinned as wide as she dared. "You remember watching the Hero of Light from the alternate dimension?"

Link grunted, obviously not liking to be reminded of having to watch the direct actions of his splitting the timeline. "Yes, I remember. Again, your point?"

"Sheesh!" the princess gasped, clearly exasperated from his outbursts. "You honestly can't appreciate a good story, can you?"

"Not when I'm in a hurry." With that, his jaw set in the exact way that let her know that she was whittling his scarce patience down to dangerously low levels.

"Yes, yes, I'm getting to the point. The Hero of Light had a guide that maintained a physical presence, yes? Much like your own Navi, only larger and could actually help him when need be." Zelda looked towards his eyes, hoping for a favorable response. She got absolutely no emotion from him. A little unnerved, she cleared her throat and continued. "A-Anyways, Naroou and I were reading the manuscripts, and apparently there is a way for a Hero of Old to become something similar to a new hero. We have reason to believe that that person is you."

Link was quiet for a long time. His gaze constantly flickered from her face to the walls, to the ceiling, to the screen where the kid lay, still sleeping. It was to the boy that he looked most often.

"…Does the kid have any say in this?" the hero finally asked, keeping his voice carefully neutral.

"Well, I should hope so!" the princess said, a little surprised. "You should know that no hero gets stuck with his guide by accident, let me tell you—"

"Name one time when they haven't been forced upon the hero of their age." His eyes were daring her to challenge him. Zelda immediately felt uncomfortable and looked away, as inconspicuously as she could manage.

"…You could've put Navi in a bottle and thrown her down Death Mountain's shaft…" she said hesitantly, not knowing quite how to approach the subject.

"Oh, right, because a hero chosen by the goddesses themselves would totally choose to hurt someone, right?" Link asked, anger seeping through his supposed-to-be-calm tone. "Because I totally would've thrown away the only person I had left from the forest, right?"

"Link…" the princess whispered, leaning forward a little and forcing him into a hug. To his credit, he didn't pull away or cry, though he looked like he wanted to do both. "Why don't you tell me these things?"

"It doesn't matter," he said decidedly, closing his eyes in an effort to escape her stare. "It's over, right? So I have to move on now. Anything else you'd care to mention about the prophecy?"

"It'd help if you told me what you honestly thought about it…" Zelda said, holding him the slightest bit tighter. "I can't concentrate on anything when you refuse to let me in."

One eye opened just slightly, and Link just sighed. "I… guess the kid deserves someone that could honestly teach him some sword tricks."

"And you deserve someone that can understand you."

Her statement seemed to genuinely surprise the hero, and he opened his eyes fully in order to understand more than just her words. "…What?"

"You heard me," Zelda said, looking away. "You deserve someone that can understand you. I haven't been doing well with that for quite some time. You… you need someone that can genuinely help you. I can't do anything for you, and… it's hurting both of us."

Something in her tone suggested that she'd been wanting to say this to him for quite some time.

"Zelda…" he started, gently taking one of her hands. She cut him off, but kept her hand in his.

"No, no. Don't try to deny it, Link. I'm not here for you when I should be. We've been here for how long, and… and this is the longest conversation we've had in half a century!" the princess seemed desperate to get through to him, and Link knew he had to do something or else the noise would get to the sleeping hero.

The Hero of Time put a thumb under her chin and forced her to look at anywhere but the ground. She was noble and kind—it wasn't right for her to be looking at the floor.

"If I say yes, are you sure you'll be fine?" he asked, staring her in the eye.

"I'm more worried about you."

It was silent a moment, and the stare was finally broken as a sudden motion from the boat captured their peripheral vision. The King of Red Lions had started sailing, slowly, and although it looked more like he was simply rocking the boy further to sleep, he seemed to be heading in a particular direction…

"Is there anything else I'll need to know?" he asked, once more returning his stare.

"…The boy will be needing the Master Sword," Zelda said, obviously guilty.

Link was confused for a moment. "Yes, he'll need the Master Sword. All heroes in this land—covered by an ocean or not—need it. It's the goddesses gift for those who have unmatched courage. What of it?"

"…He is still young." And the princess looked away.

It took a minute for the hero to process her words. But then, it a realization hit him, just as hard, if not harder, than a punch to the stomach. "You mean… he might have to wait, like I did?"

"He won't," Zelda said quickly, almost angry. "It was… part of the ancient text. The goddesses wanted an ultimatum. They needed you to…"

Link was left baffled as the princess suddenly started to cry. She let out almost impossible to understand words, most of which sounded like, "I'm sorry"s.

"It's… It's okay. It's not like it's your fault or anything," the hero was quick to say, running his hand through her hair. He hadn't noticed it until then, but it must've gotten longer since they'd been here… Not much, but just a little. Link frowned, puzzling over why she—or her hair, at least—would be aging.

"But it is!" Zelda whispered fiercely, hugging him as tight as she dared. "If I hadn't told you to go get those pearls, all those years ago…"

"Then someone else would've had to do it. It's fine, and I don't regret it. But right now, Zelda, I need to know everything you can tell me about this prophecy." In case she hadn't heard him—she had turned away from him and was looking anywhere but his face—he leaned in closer to her. "Please."

The princess backed away from him and wiped uselessly at her eyes. "…Right. Naroou and I have been deciphering the text, and… we're almost positive that if you play the Song of Time on the Ocarina, along with the Hero of Winds conducting the same song… he may avoid that fate. But in doing so, you will… be seen by him and get a physical presence, though the extent of it is unknown."

"…In Hylian, please?" Link groaned, trying to pick apart her wording.

"If you play the Song of Time on the Ocarina I gave you, and if the kid conducts it, he won't have to sleep for seven years like you did. However, you'll be visible to him, then, and you'll be able to leave the Realm of Heroes to be a physical guide to him. I don't know whether you'll be barely visible, like a ghost, or a full, physical, person, though."

The hero considered this for a moment. "He's a smart kid. He's going to figure it out. …He… knows enough of the old legends to realize that I'm, you know…"

The screen went dark for a moment, and both princess and hero turned towards it, confused and just a _little_ worried. Okay, maybe more than just a little worried…

But the boat quickly appeared again, and the screen was brighter than ever.

"That's Hyrule of Old!" Zelda said as loud as she dared. "Do you know what this means?"

"Eh, the kid will be given an impromptu history lesson and probably be closer to getting the Master Sword than either of us would like?" Link asked, scratching the back of his head in confusion. He suddenly noted that his hat was still off and searched the room with his eyes until he found it a few feet away. The hero slowly reached for it and then set it back atop his head with a small smile.

"Well, yes," the princess said, worriedly looking towards him, "But it also means that there's a Din-be-burnt portal to Old Hyrule now! If the King of Red Lions and Hero of Winds found it, then…"

"Ganondorf." The hero mentally cursed the name, slamming a fist into his own forehead. "Stupid, stupid, stupid! And he's taking the kid there while he's trying to sleep?"

"I don't think that the hero will wake…" Zelda said, cautious. "He's too tired."

Link let out a huffy sigh, then counted to ten very slowly in his head. "But the kid is going to wake sooner or later, and won't it be nice when the King of Red Lions so calmly explains to him that they're now in an ancient city that was long thought buried by the rain?"

"Well, to be honest, it is, but…"

"But nothing! He's bound to find something confusing in there, and I don't want to explain every single detail! I know that the kid's going to… you know… find out sooner or later, but…!" the hero seemed positively exasperated, and crossed his arms with a pout. "I don't want to mess things up. We were fighting while he was trying to defeat Gohdan, and he got… distracted…"

Zelda was quiet for a minute. After a while, though, she seemed to find her voice, however hesitant she was. "Why are you so nervous? Yes, I know you lied to him, but… why did you do it in the first place?"

The hero sighed. "…I guess I figured he wouldn't want advice from a dead guy, much less a dead hero that managed to break apart the Triforce of Courage and… sink an entire kingdom because he… wasn't there to…"

"Hey," Zelda said, smiling lightly and putting her thumb under his chin, raising it just slightly. It seemed wrong for him to look at his shoes… "Chin up, okay? It's the past, and this kid's the future. So long as you pay attention, you can really help him."

And that appeared to have done it. She seemed to have raised not only his head, but his eyes… and, though she was hesitant to admit it, his spirits.

"Okay."

Somehow, she knew he wasn't just agreeing to keep his chin up.

000

"_**You are weary, Hero,"**__ an ethereal voice was saying, her voice so soft and sweet that it seemed to be more of a spoken lullaby than anything else. _

_But somehow, though Link had a feeling that she was unearthly, it felt right for him to speak to her. "I need to keep fighting… I shouldn't be sleeping. There are things I need to do…" _

"_**Those things cannot be done if you are exhausted. You would have had an easier time beating Gohdan, my servant and protector of my Tower, if you had properly rested before-hand."**__ She—and the hero had no further doubt that this was Farore, the Goddess of Courage—sounded a bit stern, as if chiding a wayward child. Link suddenly understood that he was exactly that. _

"_I wanted to get out of there. I just wanted to go back home," the hero said, somehow knowing that he couldn't possibly lie to her. If the ancient legends—even more ancient than the legends of the Hero of Time—were true, she had been the one to make all the people of the world. And if she'd made them, then it was only fitting that she'd know what they were feeling. _

"_**I understand, Hero. Still, it is not wise to continue on like that for too long. I made you, after all. I know your limits better than you do,"**__ she said, and there was an undeniable smile in her voice, though he couldn't see her. He couldn't see anything, really. Just a bright green all around him that made him feel strangely peaceful… and tired. A deeper sleep was going to come upon him any time, he could feel it. __**"I don't like seeing you hurt."**_

"_Then why did you make me a hero?" Link asked, suddenly curious. There was no malice in his voice, just genuine curiosity for the deity that seemed so set upon caring for him, yet pushing him to the front lines. She was somehow able to say blatant contradictions in the same breath… _

"_**You are the only one able to carry this task. Deities can only do so much, you see. Mortals cannot comprehend most of what we do, and we cannot fully control our power. Surely you've heard of how we caused the Great Sea to swallow up Hyrule, the Kingdom of Old?" **__She asked, and Link nodded. He'd heard the legends. Maybe he didn't know them as well as he was supposed to, but his grandma had told him as much about them as she could… __**"We could not contain so much power. So, though we wanted to save Hyrule, we had no choice but to drown it. Our way of protecting it sadly turned into captivity for the residents who chose to stay…" **_

"_I understand," the hero said, looking to the ground. It was green, like everything else. _

"_**Do you?" **__Farore asked, amused. __**"You do not know all of the legends, child. As intelligent as you are, you do not comprehend as fully as you'd have others believe." **_

"_Then show me," Link beckoned, looking all around him. The green seemed to be swallowing him up, and it was starting to scare him. "Please! Don't say that you want to protect me when you're putting me in danger! Why did you call to me?" _

"_**You will possess my mark, Hero." **_

"_I know that!" the hero said, exasperated. "And I know that it is a great honor! But why me?" _

"_**Patience, Hero…" **__Farore whispered, and though Link didn't see anything, he felt something warm on his face, wiping tears that he hadn't known were there. __**"I have already told you. You are the only one in the Great Sea that I trust to carry this task." **__Seeing his crestfallen expression, She embraced him. __**"Do not lose heart, child… You shall have help." **_

"_My guide?" Link asked, sighing at how cryptic She insisted on being. _

"_**Yes, child. Your guide. He shall lead you, just as his guide led him. And eventually, you shall lead another. But you must trust him, Hero. He may not be as strong as he used to be, but he shall lead you well." **__And She embraced him once more. _

"_Wait!" the hero said, reaching out for the single patch of green that was vaguely human-shaped and stood out among the rest of the green, "You know who he is? Will you tell me?" _

"_**He will tell you when he is ready, Hero. For now, though, sleep. You are more tired after this than you should be, and I fear that I've interrupted your rest. Stay strong, child, and do take proper care of yourself, will you?" **__She asked, placing a kiss on his forehead that made him feel pleasantly warm, and more tired than before. _

"…_I will. Thank you." _

_And the green vanished, leaving him with the black of a dreamless sleep. _

000

Zelda had left a few minutes after her and Link's meeting in order to get him some proper food—she was embarrassed to have forgotten that she had left before with the promise of soup and never returned with it—and came back through the wall with a tray full of his favorites. Link raised an eyebrow at this, curious as to why she was suddenly so interested in serving him, but didn't protest.

"So, let me get this straight," the hero said in-between mouthfuls of food, "When he's about to draw the Master Sword, I have to start playing the Song of Time, and he'll just… conduct along-side me?"

"I think that's how it's supposed to go…" Zelda said, shrugging. "You might have to teach him before-hand. I'm not all that sure, but unless you want him to sleep for seven years, I highly suggest taking any precaution necessary."

Link nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I think I got that part…" He rubbed at his temple a moment, willing his eyes to stay open. He hadn't gotten much sleep lately, and the atmosphere was teasingly peaceful.

"Tired?" the princess asked, raising her eyebrow in obvious amusement.

"Mph." And it just about summed up his feelings on the matter. With his stomach full enough to be content, the hero leaned back, sighing in contentment. "And… a little nervous."

"Don't be. You'll do great," Zelda smiled.

"So I hear. Hey, by the way, did you actually get this approved by the Council?" Link asked, cracking one eye open for just long enough to see her expression. The princess paled a little, looking quickly away, and the hero couldn't help but laugh. "I take that as a no, then?"

"…I knew I'd forgotten something…" she mumbled, drawing her knees to her chest.

"Hey, don't worry. _You'll do great,_" Link said, grinning as he repeated her words from earlier. Unbeknownst to the duo, the Council of the Realm of Heroes had placed a 'window' (so to speak) in his room, and they'd been listening to their conversation for the past hour.

They weren't happy, and the King of Old looked like he might just blow his top.

**XXX**

**Heh. Sorry it's not as long as usual… I just honestly couldn't bring myself to write anything more. Plus, it seemed a fitting place to leave off on, eh? And what's that, you say? I left off on a semi-cliffhanger? **

…**You'll love the next bit of news, then. **

**I probably won't update next week. Spending Thanksgiving with family and all that jazz, yanno? So if you don't see this story pop up in your inbox (and shame on you if you're just now realizing that I update weekly. I mean, it's on the summary for pete's sake!) next week, well, you know the answer, savvy? **

**And tell me how much you liked the development in this chapter, pleeeease! I rather liked it, because I seriously love writing for Link and Zelda, and I love writing for Link and Farore even more. …That's not meant to be taken as a pairing, tho'. Nonetheless, take it how you will. Until next time!**

**Read and Review**


	18. Realizations

**Lack of inspiration is… draining, to say the least. And I know the trolls that follow this story must be saying, "Y U UPDATE OTHER STORIES, DEN?" but it's simply because I haven't had inspiration for **_**this **_** story. Ah, well. I've worked through writer's block before, and I'll do it again. **

**Note: I've been asked about ten times why I'm 'misspelling Nabooru's name. … I'm not. The character I'm including in this story is a different sage of spirit. She's Nabooru's great-great grandma or something. Her name is Naroou and, quite frankly, I'm tired of PMing people, trying to tell them that. Seriously, guys. Before you complain and say that I hadn't told you this, I apologize. I thought I'd already mentioned that in-story, but I must've editited it out by mistake… Either way, you guys don't have to be rude about it. Geez. (If it'll make you feel better, I'll add it in this chapter. I honestly thought I'd explained this, tho'. Sorry for the confusion~!)**

**Disclaimer: Don't own this awesomesauce series. Wish I did, but I don't. *sigh* **

***hears cries of "You can't do any better than that for this disclaimer?"***

**Well excuuuuuuse me, Princess! **

**XXX**

Link blinked his eyes open slowly, barely registering the fact that he was awake. He'd just been dreaming moments ago, hadn't he…? Something about a bunch of green surrounding him… and a strange woman—he was sure he'd never met her—telling him something. The hero shrugged, though, yawning and sitting up slowly.

A chorus of "Aii!" was suddenly heard throughout the land—though Link didn't know _what _land, exactly, he was in—and he went back to laying down. Din-burn-it-all if his guide hadn't lied to him about stretching making it hurt less! His arms felt like they were on fire, his stomach wasn't much better, and he didn't even want to try to move his legs.

'_Heh. You sore or something, kid?' _'Navi' asked, and Link could just _hear_ the smirk in his guide's voice. And, strangely enough, he thought he could hear a girl's voice in the background…

"Darnyouwhycouldn'," the hero grumbled, taking care not to alert his boat that he was awake.

It didn't work so well, mainly because of his yell before.

"Ah, Hero. You have awoken. You must be wondering where you are right now, correct?" the King of Red Lions asked, craning his neck around to see Link.

Link, however, wasn't confused in the least. Granted, he knew he should've been, seeing as he woke up in a totally different place—and the black-and-white color scheme was staring to freak him out—but somehow… he wasn't freaking out. Still, he nodded, waiting for the boat to explain.

"You are in the ancient Kingdom of Hyrule," the King of Red Lions said, for once not beating around the bush. Link stared at him for a moment, eyes half lidded with the heaviness of his sleep.

A few seconds later, the hero apparently realized what, exactly, the boat had said. He couldn't properly faint, already laying down and all, but he slipped unconscious quickly enough.

"…Hero…?" the boat asked, a little worried. "…Are you all right?

And, as expected when talking to a person who fainted, the King got no answer. He sighed, starting to move through the water. The King of Red Lions figured that he might as well be at the entrance to the castle when the boy came to… again.

000

"Well that's… different," the Hero of Time mumbled, leaning back against the wall. Zelda smirked.

"I don't find it so strange," she said, putting an arm around his shoulders. "In fact, I'd actually expect it. He doesn't know the legends, and for all he knows, he's dead or something."

Link was quiet for a minute. "…Yeah, well, it's not that I blame him, 'cause I don't, but it's just kind of…"

Zelda's eyes widened, quickly realizing what he meant to say. "You think that, because he fainted upon realizing that he was in Hyrule, that he'll freak out even worse when he realizes that… 'Navi'… is you?"

The hero nodded, smiling sheepishly. "Thought I told you to stop that mind-reading thing…"

"Thought I told you that you're too easy to read," she teased, hugging him. "Oh, Link… You don't have to worry. If this is a prophecy, then it'll end up okay."

Link automatically stiffened. "When has a prophecy that involved me ever ended up working out right?"

"You saved the world," she reminded him, not letting go no matter how much he squirmed. "Just in case you're forgetting or something."

"Riiiight," he rolled his eyes. "You know, right before I split a timeline because, somehow, I managed to stay this age while a different me went back to being a kid and had all sorts of other adventures. And that was just a couple years before I totally screwed over the kingdom's economy and then, of course, I managed to split apart the Triforce! Do you know what it's like to have to deal with that? I gave up my entire childhood—save seven years, which, by the way, weren't the happiest years, in case you're forgetting that Mido constantly made fun of me and my only friend was Saria, who was gone most of the time—to go save the world and then just managed to mess it up!"

He hadn't realized that he'd managed to push the princess away from him during his rant. Link stood up and Zelda quickly found herself backed up against the corner.

"Link…" she whispered, putting a hand to his cheek. He flinched, backing up slightly.

"I… I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking away. "I should've… I shouldn't have… I mean…"

Zelda just hugged him again, very nearly knocking him onto the ground. "You don't have to apologize."

"But I want to. I can't turn into… you know…"

It was quiet for a moment, the air heavy with tension, before the princess sighed and backed away, taking his hands with her. "You never used to worry."

Link looked up at that, his eyes meeting hers in momentary confusion. "I had something to do then. It's been several hundred years, Zelda. Six hundred? Or seven?"

The princess smiled. "A little over five hundred."

"Really?" he asked, genuinely surprised. "Feels like a lot longer."

"Feels longer to me, too," she agreed, "But somehow, I think we're lucky for it. How many people can claim that they've been married for this long?"

Link chuckled. "Shame that we only had one kid, though."

Zelda half-heartedly wacked his arm. "She was perfect, you dolt." Link raised an eyebrow, and she quickly corrected herself. "_Is_ perfect. Shame that we had to watch her grow up from here, though…"

"You're telling me?"

"You know what I'm saying," Zelda said, smiling. "At least we got to watch our grandkids, though! That's something that not everyone else can do!"

Link snorted, suddenly realizing what she was doing. "You're trying to remind me of everything good that came of this," he commented, rolling his eyes.

"Is it working?" she asked, squeezing his hands.

"…It's starting to," the hero admitted, kissing her gently. The moment passed, and Zelda broke away, giggling as if it was her first kiss. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing's funny," she said, grinning. "I'm just… ecstatic."

"Happy?" Link clarified, raising an eyebrow. "And might I ask why?"

"Because you are!" she practically shouted, putting her arms around his neck. Link laughed, too, and took the hint. He spun her around—like he always used to after a victory—and set her down after a moment.

"I should be happy more often then," he said, grinning as wide as she was.

"Yes, yes you should."

And they kissed again, just as before. For the moment, the world looked like it was perfect. There was no Ganondorf on the world beneath their feet—visible through the screen—there were no priorities or duties, and absolutely nothing keeping them apart.

Pure and perfect.

It was a shame that people tended to never allow either of those things to remain intact.

000

"We cannot allow this to continue."

Silence. Hesitation.

"You agree with me, don't you?"

More hesitation. Someone coughing.

"You have to admit, they cannot go on like this. They are disobeying direct authority, and I will not tolerate insubordination."

Someone glared.

"Excuse me, sir. What do you mean, 'insubordination'?"

A cheeky grin.

"I am the oldest King here."

"I understand that. But you are no longer the acting leader of Hyrule, so why do you lord over these meetings, sir?"

The smile fell.

Silence. Hesitation built up.

"You wouldn't understand, Sage of Light—"

"It's Sage of Spirit, and I go by Naroou."

More hesitation. Someone coughing.

"…You know, the great-great grandmother of Nabooru?"

"Who?"

Angry silence.

"You mean to say that you don't know who the legendary Nabooru is?"

"She… had something to do with the Hero of Time, right?"

Quiet mumbling, and a sure sign of an uprising.

"She was the Sage of Spirit in his time. She also gave her life to better the world. She aided the Hero on his quest. …You honestly didn't know this?"

"W-Well, it sounds familiar when you say it like that—"

"So you don't know the legends."

More mumbling. It was getting louder.

"I… have been busy…"

"You were here when he was going on his adventure. You watched the whole thing. You sat next to me, for Farore's sake!"

A new voice.

"That's enough of that, Naroou. You don't need to hassle the man!"

"He needs someone to hassle him!"

Tense silence.

"I admit that I was not the most vigilant during the time of the hero, but as I said, I was… I was busy…"

"You watched the entire time. What is it about the boy that you cannot stand? That he was adored by his people and chose to help them instead of being a greedy overlord?"

"_**That's quite enough, Naroou.**_**" **

All heads looked up. A quiet, calm voice came from nowhere, and they all knew exactly who She was.

"I… I am sorry, Deity Farore."

"_**It is alright, child. But please refrain from badgering the man. He is not as strong as he used to be.**_**" **

One man stiffened. The room seemed to get colder and smaller.

"_King_."

"Y-Yes?"

"_**If you have nothing pleasant to say, I highly suggest that you stop speaking. That goes for meaningless hate of the Hero, as well." **_

"Y-Yes, Deity Farore."

"_**Do you not have a meeting to conduct?"**_

Silent agreements.

"_**Good. And if I may say so, I highly suggest you listen to the Princess Zelda. Her logic is sound, and if you do not want to doom the world below to waiting seven years for **_**their**_** hero, I propose that you go along with her plan. Do I make myself clear?" **_

Heads nodded.

"_**If that is all, I bid you my sincerest pardon. I do not mean to interfere, but it is the Goddesses' duty to keep their people from making rash decisions." **_

She left.

Stares. Silence. Hesitation built up.

"…All in favor of following through with the Princess's plan?"

Not a single hand stayed down. The roomed echoed with a chorus of "_Yea_".

000

"…_er_…" Someone was saying. Inwardly, the hero groaned, obviously trying to stay in the realm of his dreams. But the voice persisted, only coming into focus in fragments. "…ill _you wa… …ing to ge… …ull yourself toge… …Link_!"

Link snapped awake at the sound of his name. He rubbed eyes and found himself staring up at an unfamiliar sky. In fact, it looked much, much bluer than usual…

"Ah, Hero! You are awake! I was beginning to worry," the King of Red Lions said, alerting the hero to his presence. "I do not know why, but you fainted when I told you where you were."

Link frowned a moment, trying to recall where, exactly, the boat had told him he was. His mind drew a blank, and he shrugged. The hero slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, trying to ignore the pain lining each and every one of his muscles.

"As I said before, you are in Hyrule, the Kingdom once thought buried beneath the waves. You are beside the castle as we speak."

The hero blinked sleepily, once again trying to process what, exactly, was going on. The realization hit him, and he fought to not give into shock—again. Link, in an effort to stay awake, dove out of the boat and dowsed himself in the clear water by the castle.

It did the trick.

"What are you doing?" the King of Red Lions asked, obviously confused.

'Trying to stay sane, 'cause you felt the sudden need to bring me to a totally random place while I was asleep,' Link wanted to say, but fortunately held his tongue. The boat frowned, confused as always at the hero's silence, but seemed to shrug (how he managed without shoulders, the world may never know).

"As I said before, you are at the castle of old. I will explain things to you as you go, but for now, I suggest entering through the doorway over there."

Link sighed. He'd had a feeling that his boat would never tell him anything going on, but knew that he'd comply anyways.

The hero nodded, slowly getting out of the boat. As much as he wanted to remain motionless—he was sore, why was he so sore?—he knew he had to finish his quest. …Even if it was just to figure out what the heck was going on.

He walked as fast as he dared—which wasn't very fast at all—towards to doorway. And, true to form, 'Navi' decided to surprise him just as he was about to pull on the handle.

'—_he up?' _his guide said, scaring Link very nearly away from his skin. The hero jumped, tripping over his own two feet, and landed on his rear. _'Ah… sorry about that, kid. Didn't mean to startle you.' _

Link grumbled something unintelligent, slowly but surely getting back to his feet. "You jerk! You should've told me about this!"

'Navi' sighed. _'Dude. Are you somehow forgetting that I had, like, three seconds before you passed out to tell you? And besides, I doubt you would've taken it better coming from me.' _

"Yes, I would've!" the hero whispered fiercely, pulling as hard as he could on the door. It didn't budge. "You aren't a weird guy that only ever tells me to do stuff and drags me around the ocean!"

'_Well, no, but—'_ 'Navi' cut himself off quickly, sighing again. _'Dude. Push, don't pull.' _

"…Sorry," Link mumbled, pushing on the door. It took some effort, but he felt it starting to give and it swung open a moment later. "Guess I'm a little tired. I keep having these weird dreams…"

'_Oh?' _his guide asked, suddenly curious. _'Do you remember what about?' _

"It was something about you," the hero said off-handedly. "Don't remember how, though…"

'_I see…' _

Link blinked, looking up and all around him. "…This is the castle? It looks… gray…"

'_I assure you, kid, it didn't used to. Some magic's at work, here, making it to where the color's all missing… it's downright creepy.' _

"How _do_ you know all this?" Link asked, finally too curious to refrain from asking.

000

The Hero of Time took a deep breath, preparing himself for what he knew he had to say. He had the opportunity, and he had the need. Now he just needed the courage. He wished that Zelda had stayed, but when she saw that the boy was up and about, she'd quietly slipped out. It was almost a pity, though he knew as well as she that her silence wouldn't last forever.

Link braced himself.

000

Link heard a deep breath from 'the other side', so to speak. Then hesitation, and a lot of it. "…Dude? Navi? You okay over there?"

'_Ah… Alright, yeah, I'm… fine… I um… I kind of have to tell you that I'mactuallytheHeroofTime?'_

The hero was quiet for a minute. Then quiet for another minute, then another and another.

"…Huh? The… the Hero of… Legend?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "But… how…? Why…?" Rage took over confusion in an instant, and he glared at the roof. "Why didn't you tell me in the first place? How do you even exist? You've gotta be… You've gotta be how old?"

'…_I have some explaining to do, don't I?' _the newly discovered Hero of Time asked, sounding half-ashamed of himself. Link figured he had a right to be.

"Yeah, you do. Now start explaining," Link demanded, crossing his arms. 'Navi' (or should he be calling his guide the 'Hero of Time'?) sighed again, taking a deep breath before launching into the longest speech he thought he'd ever heard from his guide.

'_Before Hyrule was flooded, I was the hero. I'm pretty sure you already know that story, don't you? Or, you know, as much of it as you can and all…' _'Navi' trailed off, and Link continued to glare. _'…Right. So, I was the Hero of Time, and near the end of my quest, Zelda decided that I deserved to actually… live out my childhood. Be halfway normal, you know? But unfortunately… that didn't work out so well. For me, personally, it didn't work. So, she and I both kinda gave up. What we didn't know was that, by trying to go back in time, we actually had, but by doing so, we'd split the timeline in two.' _

"What?" Link couldn't help but ask. "…How is that even possible?"

'…_The Ocarina of Time is a very unstable magical item, said to be as unstable as time itself. We didn't know of the effects until much later. But because it didn't work for Zelda and I, unlike the other half of the timeline, we had to rebuild the kingdom. We kinda… well, we'd gotten pretty close while the adventure was still going on, and after a while, we… eh, we kinda got married. We were happy for several years, and we even had a kid. _

'_Unfortunately, those happy years? They didn't last, if that makes you feel any better. I was kind of an awful king, as I'm sure you'd expect. Zelda and I used a lot of money to… well, mainly to give food to people that needed it more, and while the people liked me for it, the nobles were mad. Like, really mad. They… they weren't the nicest people in the world. They were greedy, and while Zelda and I were using the money… they were staging a coup d'état. That's pretty much an uprising, I guess. They drove Zelda and me out of the country, along with a good portion of the army. _

'_At the same time, there was… a rebellion of a different sort. Monsters came over the land, even though I thought I'd sealed Ganondorf. I guess that should've been a big hint that something was wrong, huh? Guess I ended up failing even worse than everyone thought.' _

Link stayed quiet, choosing to sit on the stairs. A statue of the Hero of Legend was visible in the corner of his eye, and he found himself staring at it while he listened to his guide.

'_And… well, even though we had most of the army on our side… it wasn't enough. We couldn't battle all of the monsters. There were so many, and they'd learned to fight together, instead of just one at a time, like I was used to. They picked us apart. Soon, there weren't more than a dozen of us, including Zelda and me.' _The Hero of Time was quiet for a moment, obviously lost in his memories. Link stayed quiet, puzzling over the statue in the center of the room.

It was strange to watch it, knowing that the man it was based off of was speaking to him at that exact moment. It was even stranger to know that, if he finished his quest, someone might make a statue of him. All in all, Link deemed it a very unpleasant thought and pushed it away.

Still, it persisted. The eyes of the statue stood out, and for the first time, he seemed to notice that they looked… strange. Like they were upset about something. Link stared, and didn't feel bad about staring. 'Navi' (or was it the Hero of Time? Link was confused) seemed to notice and cleared his throat.

'…_Zelda's father, the King before me, ordered it to be built. Thought it was only 'honorable' for me to have a statue made after me. …He never much liked me, to be honest. I don't know what convinced him to make it. But I can't believe that it actually stayed intact when the angry nobles turned the tables on us… I thought they'd burnt it or smashed it or something…_

'_A-Anyways, what I was saying before was that… the monsters sprang up from nowhere. It would've been too much for us, even if we'd had all of our numbers, but with only a dozen of us… we didn't stand a chance. I… was the last one standing.' _

There was an underlying meaning to that, Link knew. He'd had to watch everyone that was left die, right there in front of him. …And he hadn't been able to do anything about it.

'_I dropped my weapons. …I… I surrendered. I begged for mercy, I guess—I don't remember the details. I asked for them to make it quick. And I felt something break inside of me. …I late found out that that was the Triforce. When I asked for mercy from a monster… for them to dispose of me quickly… apparently I was sacrificing whatever courage I'd had left. Not that I'd had much. Running for my life for several months did little to strengthen it. But… when I asked…_

'_It broke. I had the Triforce of Courage on my side, and it broke! Do you know what that's like? To feel the Triforce break because you were too weak to bear it anymore?_

'…_I lost everything that the Goddesses had given me, Link. I lost it all. And… And I wrecked everything for future generations, too. I guess I was the only hope for Hyrule, for… Zelda. I had to watch both of them fall. And then I just managed to screw everything up more. _

'_The monster closest to me—I honestly don't remember which one it was anymore—burned me to a crisp. I died instantly, so yes, I'm a ghost. I'm sure you're absolutely terrified right now, aren't you? Don't deny it, kid,' _the Hero of Time said, a sob barely held back in his voice. _ 'I know you don't like ghosts. They're creepy, aren't they?' _

Link stiffened, still staring at the statue, as if it were the statue that was speaking to him. In a way, he figured, it was. Or at least it was the closest thing to his guide, visually.

'_The… the people of Hyrule… most burned, but the Goddesses chose a few to take refuge in the mountaintops. My daughter was one of them. She kept the Triforce of Wisdom with her and passed it onto her child, who in turn passed it to hers, and it continued like that for several hundred years. A little over five hundred, actually,' _'Navi' said with a humorless chuckle. _'And then, the sea buried the castle, though a barrier prevented any actual damage. All of the inhabitants of this land… they're still alive, but they're… lifeless. Completely and utterly lifeless. _

'_But I figure you wonder why I was even chosen to guide you, huh?_' the ex-hero asked the current hero, and Link nodded._ '…I didn't want to see you end up like me,' _he admitted._ 'I didn't want to see you fall, and when it looked like you were going to, some of the Sages told me that I could try to help. I didn't tell you who I was because I figured… you weren't going to like getting advice from a hero who… failed.' _

"…Then why are you telling me this now?" the Hero of Winds asked, furrowing his brows. "Why?"

'_Prophecy. You remember how I had to sleep for seven years in order to wield the Master Sword, right?' _the guide asked, and Link nodded. _'I was your age when I fell into that sleep. The magic that will make a person sleep until he's the right age… would still hold now. If you touched it, and you're going to be receiving it soon… then you would have to sleep for seven years. I don't want you to go through that.' _

"What can you do about it?" Link asked, already seeing where this was going.

'_Again, the prophecy thing. The way it was explained to me is that, if I teach you how to conduct the Song of Time on your Wind Waker, and if I played alongside you with the Ocarina of Time, then you wouldn't have to sleep for that long. Or at all, actually. So… I figure it would've been awful suspicious if I taught you the Song of Time and you figured out that I was… you know… on your own. Do you… understand, at least? Why I did all this?' _

Link was quiet for a minute. "…I think I understand." In a carefully neutral voice, he continued. "Can you teach me the song?"

'_Yes. I'll do that,' _'Navi' said hurriedly. _'But there's a catch in the prophecy, kid. When I play the song… when you play alongside me… I will appear to you. I don't know how, and what form I'm going to take… but… please, don't hate me.' _

"I can't hate you," Link said, looking at the statue again, meanwhile fishing for his Wind Waker. "…You have… decent reasoning. I'm sorry if I seemed angry earlier… This is just… kind of a lot."

'_You're not going to faint again, are you?' _the Hero of Time asked, slightly worried.

"Nah," Link said with a shrug. "I think I'll be okay." They were quiet for a moment, then the hero smiled. "So… are you going to teach me the song?"

'_R-Right!' _'Navi' said, slightly in shock from how well his charge was taking all of it. _'Ah… It's to the right, then to the center, then down, and then you repeat the melody.' _

Link tried it, and though the first few times were rather sketchy, he got it right on the third try. "Like that?"

'_Like that,' _his guide said, seeming to nod. _'Now, you just need to find the sword… I haven't been here in forever, and I don't know where Zelda hid it before we left…' _

"What about those triangles?" Link asked, pointing to the triangles not too far away from the statue of his… guide.

'_Something about them just screams 'Triforce'… so I think so, yeah. Good job, kid.' _

Not more than a few minutes later, the Hero of Winds was wedged between three stone triangles. He slid the last into place, suddenly realizing his folly in managing to get himself trapped between them, when they started to sink into the ground.

When they slid fully into the ground, Link turned around to see that the statue of the Hero of Time had moved, revealing a staircase.

Link blinked, then ran down into the room below.

**XXX**

**I was so nervous about this chapter. I still am, actually. Ah, well, I couldn't put off the Big Reveal for too much longer, so I'm glad it's finally out of the way. But for the sake of the plot, no, WW Link is not totally okay with OoT Link lying to him for so long. He's an honest guy by nature, so… yeah. Not a very good mark for OoT Link. Ah well. See ya later!**

**And, as always, **

**Read and Review!**


	19. Note

**I'm cancelling weekly updates. But you guys already knew that, didn't you? What with me already stopping the weekly updates…? Yeah. I meant to have updated this more recently, honestly, I just didn't know what to say. And… well, I seem to be grasping at straws. I'm trying to focus on my own novel, and there's only so much time I have for writing. I figured that if, during a high-school semester, I can write 95,000 words on the weekends and/or Friday nights, then why can't I do that with my own novel? So… yes. That is my New Year's Resolution. Don't worry—when I have writer's block or actually get inspiration for this story, I'll update it. Just… I haven't for quite some time. **

**If anyone would like to take over this story, though, please PM me. I have no plans to officially cancel this story, but a collaborator and/or co-writer would really help. But if you plan on fully taking this story over, then please write up a chapter or two. I have requirements (Chapter should be around 4,000 words and they should be updated often… not necessarily as often as I updated, but often enough to satisfy my reviewers), which I do hope people will meet. And, of course, if someone would take over this story for a while and decide that they, too cannot handle the workload, then they should tell me before someone else takes over. **

**Thanks, and happy holidays! **

**(Bet I ruined some of you guys' night, huh? Sincerest apologies. I'll try to continue this, though, so have hope!) **


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